An object is to provide an optical head device whereby the light utilization efficiency can be increased and which can be produced at a low cost. A glass substrate 1 having projections and recesses 2 formed by patterning a SiON type transparent thin film on its inner surface by dry etching, and a second glass substrate 3 having a polyimide film 4 formed as an alignment film on its inner surface, are laminated with a space, the periphery is sealed by a sealing material made of an epoxy resin 5, and liquid crystal 6 is injected under vacuum into the interior to form an optically anisotropic diffraction grating. On the outer surface of this second glass substrate 3, a quarter-wave film 7 is laminated, and a third glass substrate 9 is bonded by a photopolymer 8 to obtain a diffracting element 10. This diffracting element 10 is disposed between a light source and an optical recording medium to obtain an optical head device.