Compact near-eye display system using a superlens-based microlens array magnifier

This paper reports a new approach to making a very compact near-eye display (NED) using only two layers of microlens arrays (MLA) working in conjunction as a magnifying lens (MLA magnifier). The purpose of the MLA magnifier is to generate a virtual image of a display, positioned within several centimeters from the eye, at optical infinity to minimize the optical disparity between the surrounding scenery and the image on the display. Our MLA magnifier is about 2 mm thick with a system focal length of 5 mm and a total thickness of around 7 mm (excluding the thickness of the display) in non-folded optics configuration, which is much more compact in comparison to other popular NEDs such as Google Glass or Recon Instrument's Snow goggles having folded optics.