Characterization of a high efficiency, ultrashort pulse shaper incorporating a reflective 4096-element spatial light modulator

We demonstrate pulse shaping via arbitrary phase modulation with a reflective, 1 × 4096 element, liquid crystal spatial light modulator (SLM). The unique construction of this device provides a very high efficiency when the device is used for phase modulation only in a prism based pulse shaper, namely 85%. We also present a single shot characterization of the SLM in the spatial domain and a single shot characterization of the pulse shaper in the spectral domain. These characterization methods provide a detailed picture of how the SLM modifies the spectral phase of an ultrashort pulse.     

Dynamic complex wave-front modulation with an analog spatial light modulator

A method of producing an arbitrary complex field modulation by use of two pixels of an analog ferroelectric spatial light modulator (SLM) is demonstrated. The method uses the gray-scale modulation capabilities of a SLM to spatially encode the complex data on two pixels. A spatial filter is used to remove the carrier signal. This technique gives fast gray-level amplitude and phase modulation.     

Synthesis and reconstruction of computer generated holograms by a double pass technique on a twisted nematic-based liquid crystal spatial light modulator

Achieving phase only modulation from a spatial light modulator (SLM) is useful for many optical processing tasks. In this paper, we demonstrate a simple method of decoupling phase and amplitude modulation in a twisted nematic liquid crystal (TNLC) SLM using a double pass technique. A Jones calculus model is developed which matches our experimental data.     

Correction to: Generation of amplitude- and phase-modulated signal beam with a phase-only spatial light modulator and its detection by the transport of intensity equation method for holographic data storage

This study evaluates a novel holographic data storage (HDS) that uses a phase-only spatial light modulator (SLM) for the multilevel complex amplitude modulation of a signal beam and the transport of intensity equation (TIE) method to detect the signal beam without interferometry, to increase the capacity of the HDS, simplifying its optical system, and improving the stability of the signal beam modulation and detection. Both the amplitude and phase of the signal beam were modulated by a computer-generated hologram displayed in a phase-only SLM, a 4-f optical system, and a pinhole placed in the Fourier plane. The complex amplitude-modulated signal beam generated by this scheme does not always perfectly match the target complex amplitude, and deviations from the amplitude and phase of the target complex amplitude may exist. It is unclear whether the TIE method, which is sensitive to the state of the beam intensity and the phase distributions to be detected (such as zero-intensity points and phase discontinuities), can accurately detect a signal beam whose complex amplitude is modulated by the modulation scheme with a phase-only SLM. Here, we demonstrate via numerical simulations and experiments that several methods of complex amplitude generation using a phase-only SLM can achieve multilevel modulation of the amplitude and phase of a signal beam and are suitable for detection by the TIE method in HDS.

     

Multilevel phase and amplitude modulation method for holographic memories with programmable phase modulator

The utilization of spatial quadrature amplitude modulation (SQAM) signals with amplitude and phase modulation is a simple method used to improve storage capacity in a holographic data storage system. We propose a multilevel phase and amplitude modulation method for holographic memories with a programmable phase modulator (PPM). In this method, holographic page data is recorded by a two-step exposure process for different phase-modulated data. There is no need to adjust the positions of spatial light modulators (SLM) with high accuracy because we use only one spatial modulator. We estimate the quality of 16 SQAM signals produced by our technique.     

Hybrid multinary modulation using a phase modulating spatial light modulator and a low-pass spatial filter

We propose a method for performing binary intensity and continuous phase modulation of beams with a spatial light modulator (SLM) and a low-pass spatial filtering 4-f system. With our method it is possible to avoid the use of phase masks in holographic data storage systems or to enhance the phase encoding of the SLM by making it capable of binary amplitude modulation. The data storage capabilities and the limitations of the method are studied.     

Holographic Femtosecond Laser Processing with Multiplexed Phase Fresnel Lenses Displayed on a Liquid Crystal Spatial Light Modulator

Parallel femtosecond laser processing with a computer-generated hologram displayed on a spatial light modulator (SLM) is demonstrated. Use of the SLM enables performance of an arbitrary and variable patterning in laser processing. The hologram uses multiplexed phase Fresnel lenses (MPFLs) with features of independent tunability, three-dimensional (3D) parallelism of the diffraction peaks, optimization of the hologram with low computational costs, and low contribution of zero-order light to the processing. To make uniform the reconstructed diffraction peaks, an MPFL is optimized by changing the center phase and size of each phase Fresnel lens while taking account of the intensity distribution of the irradiated laser pulse and the spatial frequency response of an SLM. Using the holographic technique, two-dimensional parallel processing with a single-pulse irradiation of glass is demonstrated and the processing performance is analyzed.     

Common-path phase-shifting lensless holographic microscopy

We present an approach capable of high-NA imaging in a lensless digital in-line holographic microscopy layout even outside the Gabor's regime. The method is based on spatial multiplexing at the sample plane, allowing a common-path interferometric architecture, where two interferometric beams are generated by a spatial light modulator (SLM) prior to illuminating the sample. The SLM allows phase-shifting interferometry by phase modulation of the SLM diffracted beam. After proper digital processing, the complex amplitude distribution of the diffracted object wavefront is recovered and numerically propagated to image the sample. Experimental results are reported that validate the proposed method.     

Holographic femtosecond laser processing with multiplexed phase Fresnel lenses

Holographic femtosecond laser processing with multiplexed phase Fresnel lenses for high-speed parallel fabrication of microstructures is proposed. Use of a spatial light modulator (SLM) allows independent tunability of the diffraction peaks, three-dimensional parallelism, and arbitrary, variable features. The diffraction peaks are made uniform by changing the center phase and size of each phase Fresnel lens while taking account of the intensity distribution of the irradiated laser pulse and the spatial frequency response of the SLM.     

基于光学全息的任意矢量光的生成方法

基于光学全息的角度复用特性, 根据空间光调制器对光场的相位和振幅调制原理, 通过加载产生任意矢量光所需要的相位分布, 设计了一种生成任意矢量光的方法. 该方法首先利用光学全息技术记录空间光调制器加载的相位, 从而制作一个全息光栅; 再现过程中, 两束具有相同入射角度的参考光照射全息光栅, 使得两束再现光相干叠加, 进而获得可调控的任意矢量光. 该方法能够避免复杂偏振态的出现, 并且具有生成光路简单、方便操作、生成矢量光的偏振纯度高等优势. 通过计算机模拟生成了任意矢量光, 获得了很好的效果.     

Full-range, complex spatial light modulator for real-time holography

We demonstrate a full-range complex and transmissive spatial light modulator (SLM) for simultaneous and independent amplitude and phase modulation of an input wave field. Arbitrary scalar complex optical fields are generated by stacking a pixelated liquid crystal display operating in phase-only (2π) modulation with passive polarization-sensitive components. The principle is based on optical combining the light fields of two neighboring phase-only modulating pixels, which were made orthogonally polarized by a structured half-wave plate, then passing through a birefringent plate to laterally shift one of the beams collinear to the other, and finally bringing to interference by a linear polarizer. Complex modulation by the proposed SLM is experimentally verified in monochrome green operation.     

螺旋光束经过振幅型衍射光学元件的传输特性及其拓扑电荷数的测量

本文提出了一种利用空间光调制器生成杨氏双缝和三角孔等振幅型衍射光学元件的方法. 利用平面波角谱衍射公式和柯林斯公式研究了螺旋光束经过这两种衍射元件后的传输特性, 并利用杨氏双缝和三角孔实现了螺旋光束拓扑电荷数的测量. 由于空间光调制器可以方便和高精度地改变光学器件的几何尺寸和所在的空间位置, 因此可便捷地实现螺旋光束拓扑电荷数的测量.     

Laser confocal microscope with wavelet-profiled point spread function

We report a laser-scanning confocal reflectance microscope with a wavelet-profiled point spread function (PSF) for rapid multi-resolution extraction and analysis of microscopic object features. The PSF is generated via holography by encoding a π-phase shifting disk unto a collimated laser beam via a phase-only spatial light modulator (SLM) that is positioned at the pupil plane of the focusing objective lens. Scaling of the transverse PSF distribution is achieved by selecting a suitable ratio of the π-phase shifting disk radius and the pupil aperture radius. With one and the same objective lens and one SLM to control the phase profile of the pupil function, we produce amplitude PSF distributions that are accurate scaled representations of the circularly-symmetric Mexican hat mother wavelet.     

全光纤主动锁模2 μm掺铥脉冲激光器

报道了全光纤结构主动锁模掺铥脉冲激光器,中心波长为1950 nm。利用电光相位调制器对光纤激光器进行腔内相位调制,获得了重复频率为11.884 MHz的主动锁模脉冲输出,脉宽为816 ps。改变泵浦功率、调制信号的频率和幅度,获得了重复频率为4~18 kHz的弛豫振荡调制稳定脉冲输出。锁模和弛豫振荡调制获得的输出脉冲能量波动低于7%。     

Micromirror SLM for femtosecond pulse shaping in the ultraviolet

We present the application of a novel micro mirror array, which is based on a micro electro mechanical system (MEMS), as one- and two-dimensional phase-modulating spatial light modulator (SLM) for femtosecond pulse shaping in the spectral region from the deep-ultraviolet (DUV) to the near-infrared (NIR) (200–900 nm). Using such a high-resolution MEMS-SLM, we demonstrate one-dimensional pulse shaping at 400 nm, including THz-pulse train generation, chirp compensation, and phase wraps. Received: 7 April 2003 / Published online: 2 June 2003 RID="*" ID="*"Corresponding author. Fax: +49-3461/947-202, E-mail: hacker@ioq.uni-jena.de     

Diffractive characteristics of the liquid crystal spatial light modulator

The liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC SLM) is very suitable for wavefront correction and optical testing and can produce a wavefront with large phase change and high accuracy. The LC SLM is composed of thousands of pixels and the pixel size and shape have effects on the diffractive characteristics of the LC SLM. This paper investigates the pixel effect on the phase of the wavefront with the scalar diffractive theory. The results show that the maximum optical path difference modulation is 41\,$\mu$m to produce the paraboloid wavefront with the peak to valley accuracy better than $\la$/10. Effects of the mismatch between the pixel and the period, and black matrix on the diffraction efficiency of the LC SLM are also analysed with the Fresnel phase lens model. The ability of the LC SLM is discussed for optical testing and wavefront correction based on the calculated results. It shows that the LC SLM can be used as a wavefront corrector and a compensator.     

Femtosecond pulse shaping using a two-dimensional liquid-crystal spatial light modulator

We introduce a programmable, high-rate scanning femtosecond pulse shaper based on a two-dimensional liquid crystal on a silicon spatial light modulator (SLM). While horizontal resolution of 1920 addressable pixels provides superior fidelity for generating complex waveforms, scanning across the vertical dimension (1080 pixels) has been used to facilitate at least 3 orders of magnitude speed increase as compared with typical liquid-crystal SLM-based pulse shapers. An update rate in excess of 100 kHz is demonstrated.     

Direct time-response measurement of high-speed optical modulators based on stretched-pulse interferometry

A simple technique for the direct measurement of the complex temporal response of a high-speed electro-optic (EO) modulator is proposed. This technique recovers the amplitude and phase temporal profiles of an instantaneous modulation over the duration of a chirped pulse (obtained by linear dispersion) using Fourier-transform interferometry, and it exploits the time-to-frequency mapping induced by the pulse dispersion process. The method can be implemented by using either time- or frequency-domain interferometric detection, allowing the characterization of modulation bandwidths in the tens-of-gigahertz range. The concept is demonstrated by accurately measuring the complex temporal response of a 2.5 Gbps intensity EO modulator.     

行波电光相位调制器输出响应的定量分析

从标量波动方程出发,采用傅里叶变换的方法,导出了行波电光相位调制器的时间域输出响应的计算公式。以高斯脉冲调制信号为例,定量计算并讨论了速度不匹配和微波衰减对输出相位调制信号的脉冲形状,峰值,半值宽的影响,所得到的结果,对行波电光调制器的实验研究有很好的参考价值,所给出的公式和方法适用于行波电光调制器的时间域定量分析。     

Dynamic shaping of vectorial optical fields based on two-dimensional blazed holographic grating

We propose a vectorial optical field generation system based on two-dimensional blazed grating to high-efficiently generate structured optical fields with prescribed amplitude, phase, and polarization. In this system, an optimized blazed grating hologram is written on a spatial light modulator(SLM) and can diffract the majority of the incident light into the first-order diffractions of the x and y directions, which then serve as base vectors for synthesizing desired vector beams.Compared with the conventional cosine grating used in the previous work, the proposed two-dimensional, blazed grating has a much higher efficiency. Both computer simulation and optical experiment validate that a conversion efficiency up to 5 times that of the former work is achieved. Our method can facilitate applications of the optical field manipulation.