OPTICAL ELEMENT, POLARIZING ELEMENT, AND THEIR MANUFACTURE, AND VIDEO DISPLAY DEVICE

摘要

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To obtain the video display device which is usable for both two-dimensional and three-dimensional representations by laminating a 2nd phase difference member over the formation part and nonformation part of a 1st phase difference member which is patterned. SOLUTION: The optical element is constituted by patterning a 1/2-wavelength plate as a 1st phase difference member with a 1st phase difference in stripes on a substrate 1 and laminating a 1/4-wavelength plate 3 as a 2nd phase difference member with a 2nd phase difference over the formation part and nonformation part of the 1/2-wavelength plate 2 on the 1/2-wavelength plate. This optical element projects a linear polarized light, made incident on the area where the 1/2-wavelength plate 2 is provided and other area, as elliptic polarized lights having the different polarities from the respective areas. Further, the 1/2-wavelength plate 2 and 1/4-wavelength plate 3 are arranged having their phase lagging axial direction or phase leading axial directions orthogonally to each other and then the incident linear polarized light is converted into two kinds of circular polarized light having the different polarities.