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The invention relates to a waveguide comprising a transparent polymeric central core clad externally with one or more polymeric layers, at least one of the core or clad layer containing layered particles disposed in a polymeric binder, wherein a majority of the particles have a lateral dimension les

The invention relates to a waveguide comprising a transparent polymeric central core clad externally with one or more polymeric layers, at least one of the core or clad layer containing layered particles disposed in a polymeric binder, wherein a majority of the particles have a lateral dimension less than 1 micrometer.

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1. A waveguide comprising a transparent polymeric central core clad externally with one or more polymeric layers, at least one of the core or clad layers containing layered particles disposed in a polymeric binder, wherein a majority of the particles have a lateral dimension less than 1 micrometer.

1. A waveguide comprising a transparent polymeric central core clad externally with one or more polymeric layers, at least one of the core or clad layers containing layered particles disposed in a polymeric binder, wherein a majority of the particles have a lateral dimension less than 1 micrometer. 2. The waveguide of claim 1 containing the particles in the clad layer. 3. The waveguide of claim 2 wherein the core is planar in shape. 4. The waveguide of claim 3 wherein said transparent central core and said clad layer have a thickness ratio of from 20:1 to 5:1. 5. The waveguide of claim 2 wherein the core is cylindrically shaped. 6. The waveguide of claim 2 wherein the polymeric binder further comprises an opaque material. 7. The waveguide of claim 6 wherein said opaque material is black. 8. The waveguide of claim 6 wherein said opaque material has a percent transmission from 1 to 30%. 9. The waveguide of claim 8 wherein said opaque material has a percent transmission of from 10 to 25%. 10. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of water-soluble polymers, hydrophilic colloids, and water insoluble polymers. 11. The waveguide of claim 10 wherein the binder comprises a water-soluble polymer. 12. The waveguide claim 11 wherein the water-soluble polymer comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of polyvinyl alcohol, polyethylene oxide, polystyrene sulfonate, polyvinyl pyrrolidone, polyacrylamide, polymethacrylamide, poly(N,N-dimethacrylamide), poly(N-isopropylacrylamide), polysaccharides and copolymers thereof. 13. The waveguide of claim 10 wherein the binder comprises a hydrophilic colloid. 14. The waveguide of claim 13 wherein said hydrophilic colloid comprises gelatin. 15. The waveguide of claim 10 wherein the binder comprises a water insoluble polymer. 16. The waveguide of claim 15 wherein said water-insoluble polymer comprises a latex. 17. The waveguide of claim 16 wherein said latex comprises a material selected from the group consisting of a polyester, a polyester ionomer, a polyolefin, a polyurethane, and copolymers thereof. 18. The waveguide of claim 15 wherein said water-insoluble polymer comprises a polymer derived from the monomer group consisting of styrene, acrylic and methacrylic acids and esters, maleic acid, itaconic acid, vinyl acetate, vinyl halide, vinylidene halide, and acrylonitrile. 19. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises a thermoplastic polymer. 20. The waveguide of claim 19 wherein said thermoplastic polymer comprises a material selected from the group consisting of polyester, polyolefin, polyurethane, polyamide, polycarbonate, polystyrene and copolymers thereof. 21. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises a thermosetting polymer. 22. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises a cellulose derivative. 23. The waveguide of claim 22 wherein said cellulose derivative comprises a material selected from the group consisting of carboxymethyl cellulose, hydroxyethyl cellulose, cellulose acetate, and cellulose acetate butyrate. 24. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises a polyester. 25. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises an adhesive to bind adjacent layers together. 26. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said polymeric binder comprises a radiation curable material. 27. The waveguide of claim 26 wherein said radiation curable material is selected from the group of those containing an acrylate, epoxy and isobutylene moiety. 28. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said layered particles comprise a hydrotalcite. 29. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said layered particles comprise a phyllosilicate. 30. The waveguide of claim 29 wherein said phyllosilicate comprises a smectite. 31. The waveguide of claim 30 wherein said smectite comprises montmorillonite. 32. The waveguide of claim 31 wherei n said montmorillonite comprises aluminum silicate. 33. The waveguide of claim 30 wherein said smectite comprises hectorite. 34. The waveguide component of claim 33 wherein said hectorite comprises magnesium silicate. 35. The waveguide of claim 33 wherein said hectorite is fluorinated. 36. The waveguide of claim 30 wherein said smectite is synthetic. 37. The waveguide of claim 30 wherein said smectite is organically modified. 38. The waveguide of claim 30 wherein said smectite is fluorinated. 39. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said transparent central core comprises at least one material selected from the group consisting of polyester, cellulose acetate, polycarbonate, polymethylmethacrylate, poly(cyclic olefins) and copolymers thereof. 40. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said transparent central core has a percent transmission of from 80 to 100%. 41. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said transparent central core and said clad layer have a refractive index difference of from 0.001 to 0.35. 42. The waveguide of claim 41 wherein said transparent central core and said clad layer have a refractive index difference of from 0.01 to 0.30. 43. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said transparent central core and said clad layer independently have a refractive index of from 1.0 to 2.4. 44. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said layered particles have a thickness of between 0.5 and 10 nm. 45. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said layered particles have a weight averaged aspect ratio of the largest to smallest particle dimension of between 10 and 1 to 1000 to 1. 46. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said at least one of the core or clad layer contains from 1 to 90 wt % layered particles. 47. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said clad layer contains from 1 to 90 wt. % layered particles. 48. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein said waveguide is a rear projection display screen. 49. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein the lateral dimension of the particles averages between 0.01 and 0.4 μm. 50. The waveguide of claim 1 wherein the lateral dimension of the particles averages between 0.01 and 0.05 μm. 51. The method of forming a waveguide comprising providing a transparent polymeric central core clad externally with one or more polymeric layers and including in at least one of the core or clad layer layered particles disposed in a polymeric binder, wherein a majority of the particles have a lateral dimension less than 1 micrometer.