A see-through holographic head-mounted display with the large viewing angle

•A compact holographic head-mounted display system is proposed.•The field of view is 62 degrees, three times of previous reported systems.•Diverging light is used as the reference wave to expand the field of view.•A project-type lens with large NA is designed to adapt the system.

A novel solution for the large view angle holographic head-mounted display (HHMD) is presented. Divergent light is used for the hologram illumination to construct a large size three-dimensional object outside the display in a short distance. A designed project-type lens with large numerical aperture projects the object constructed by the hologram to its real location. The presented solution can realize a compact HHMD system with a large field of view. The basic principle and the structure of the system are described. An augmented reality (AR) prototype with the size of 50 mm×40 mm and the view angle above 60° is demonstrated.