Sunday, June 04, 2006

US Patent 7054064 - Polarizer Using Aligned Nanotubes

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7054064.pdf

Polarizing sheets are commonly used in sunglasses and LCDs to control the transmission of light. This invention uses a parallel arrangement of nanotubes to achieve a polarization sheet that absorbs light parallel to the nanotube arrangement and transmits light perpendicular thereto. Advantageously this type of polarizer may work at higher temperatures and more humid environments than conventional polarizers. Claim 17 reads:

17. An optical polarizer comprising: a support member; and an optical polarizing film supported by the support member, and comprising a plurality of carbon nanotube yarns which are compactly aligned with and substantially parallel to one another, each of the carbon nanotube yarns having substantially the same width.