A monolithic optical element for an eyepiece in a head mounted display system has a body, in which a first surface of the body receives light from a display device, the light passes through a second surface of the body to an eye of a user, and a reflective folding surface is located optically between the first surface and the second surface. The reflective folding surface folds an optical path between the first surface and the second surface. Finally, a diffractive optical element is provided on at least one of the first surface or the second surface. The use of the diffractive optical surface enables the eyepiece element to be constructed of a single optical substrate material, yet function over a broad color spectrum with superior resolution and minimal distortion over a large field of view.