Virtual reality head-mounted displays (VR-HMDs) have gained significant adoption across various sectors including education, healthcare, entertainment, and manufacturing. Nevertheless, lateral chromatic aberration (LCA) remains a substantial challenge, which is significantly exacerbated by pupil misalignment during head movements. This issue compromises image quality and diminishes user immersion. Traditional approaches, such as real-time image preprocessing or eye-tracking hardware, often introduce additional latency, increasing device complexity, or additional costs. To overcome these limitations and address the increasing demand for high-quality VR experiences, we propose an innovative refractive/reflective/diffractive hybrid optical system. The system features a compact configuration (total length <22 mm), extensive field of view (FOV of 96°), and robust pupil shift tolerance within a 6 mm×6 mm rectangular range. By integrating a single-layer diffractive optical element (SLDOE), the system effectively corrects chromatic aberrations while aligning diffraction efficiency with human visual sensitivity. This approach achieves high-resolution imaging (2304 pixel×2160 pixel) while maintaining a lightweight design, enhancing user comfort and immersion.

A polarization-folded optical structure is adopted to reduce system volume while expanding FOV. This structure utilizes polarization elements including beam splitters, reflective polarizers, and quarter-wave plates to achieve optical path folding. The SLDOE, fabricated on a cycloolefin copolymer (COC) lens, utilizes its negative dispersion properties to counteract chromatic aberrations. Unlike conventional bandwidth-integrated average diffraction efficiency (BIADE) optimization methods, we develop a human eye sensitivity-diffraction efficiency (ESDE) model. This model incorporates the human eye’s spectral sensitivity curve, peaking at 0.555 μm, as a weighting factor for SLDOE optimization. By prioritizing wavelengths more perceptible to human vision, the model ensures higher diffraction efficiency in the visible spectrum range. The design process begins with constructing an initial pancake-type folded optical path. Then the optimization focuses on simulating six critical pupil positions (A?F) within the 6 mm×6 mm range to comprehensively evaluate axial and lateral chromatic aberrations, as well as the modulation transfer function (MTF). The SLDOE placement on the first lens surface minimizes stray light and simplifies fabrication processes. Finally, the SLDOE’s microstructural height is meticulously adjusted to maximize the bandwidth-integrated average ESDE (BIAESDE), ensuring compatibility with injection-molding manufacturing techniques.

The hybrid system demonstrates remarkable improvements in chromatic aberration correction and overall imaging performance. Axial chromatic aberration decreases by 49.104%, with the maximum value reducing from 124.014 μm (pre-optimization) to 65.371 μm. Lateral chromatic aberration at the worst-case pupil position (E) decreases by 35.88% to 11.705 μm, falling below the 12 μm pixel size threshold, thus rendering color fringing artifacts imperceptible. At the Nyquist frequency (42 lp/mm), MTF values exceed 0.2 across all six pupil positions, with the aligned position (A) exceeding 0.5. This performance ensures compatibility with high-resolution displays and maintains image clarity even during pupil shifts. The ESDE-optimized SLDOE achieves 90.31% average diffraction efficiency under application conditions, representing a 3.5% improvement over traditional BIADE methods. Structural validation confirms the SLDOE’s manufacturability, with a minimum zone width of 76.33 μm achievable through injection molding. The compact design, incorporating an aperture less than 60 mm and lightweight plastic lenses, further enhance wearability and user comfort.

We present an innovative hybrid optical system for VR-HMDs that effectively addresses pupil shift-induced chromatic aberrations without requiring resource-intensive correction methods. The primary contributions include the integration of SLDOE to suppress both axial and lateral chromatic aberrations while maintaining a compact form factor, and the development of ESDE optimization model. This model aligns diffraction efficiency with human visual sensitivity, enhancing optical performance and user comfort. The system demonstrates robust imaging quality across a 6 mm×6 mm pupil shift range, providing an economical and lightweight solution for next-generation VR devices. By eliminating the need for additional hardware or computationally intensive algorithms, this design significantly reduces device complexity and manufacturing costs. Future work will focus on extending the FOV beyond 120° and exploring the integration of metasurfaces for enhanced aberration correction, further advancing the capabilities of VR optical systems.