基于液晶空间光调制器的全息显示

在传统的纯相位全息显示系统中, 一般基于快速傅里叶变换(FFT)算法来计算相位全息图, 在FFT的计算中需要遵循Nyquist采样定理, 因此, 重建图像的尺寸往往受限于空间光调制器的固定采样率. 这个限制可以通过卷积算法或者两步菲涅耳衍射算法来解决, 但是需要使用多个FFT的计算, 导致计算量增大. 鉴于此, 提出了一种基于透镜的纯相位全息图计算方法. 在全息图的计算中, 通过透镜的成像原理建立一个采样率可变的虚拟全息面, 通过调节相应的距离参数使得在全息图的计算中可以任意调节原始图像的采样率, 摆脱了传统方法中液晶空间光调制器带宽积对重建图像尺寸的限制, 并且这种算法只需使用一次FFT就能达到变采样率的衍射计算, 大幅提高了全息图的计算速度. 数值模拟及光学实验结果证明了此方法可以在全息显示光学系统中清晰地重建不同尺寸的图像. 同时该系统可以有效地消除由空间光调制器的像素化结构带来的零级衍射.     

Parallel direct laser writing of micro-optical and photonic structures using spatial light modulator

Two-photon polymerization (2PP) is a powerful tool for direct laser writing of micro-optical and photonic structures due to its flexibility in 3D structuring and sub-micrometer resolution. However, it can be time consuming to fabricate arrays of micro-optical devices and complex photonic structures. In this study, we propose to use predefined patterns (PPs) for parallel 2PP processing. A PP contains a multiple focal spot pattern optimized for the fabrication of certain microstructures. PP can be created by holographic laser beam modulation with a spatial light modulator (SLM). The quantity and position of the multiple foci can be flexibly and precisely controlled by predesigned computer generated holograms (CGHs). With these specially designed PPs, parallel fabrication of arbitrary distributed microlens arrays and 3D photonic structures is demonstrated. This method significantly improves throughput and flexibility of the 2PP technique and can be used for mass production of functional devices in micro-optics and photonics.     

Super-resolution imaging in digital holography by using dynamic grating with a spatial light modulator

A super-resolution imaging method using dynamic grating based on liquid-crystal spatial light modulator (SLM) is developed to improve the resolution of a digital holographic system. The one-dimensional amplitude cosine grating is loaded on the SLM, which is placed between the object and hologram plane in order to collect more high-frequency components towards CCD plane. The point spread function of the system is given to confirm the separation condition of reconstructed images for multiple diffraction orders. The simulation and experiments are carried out for a standard resolution test target as a sample, which confirms that the imaging resolution is improved from 55.7 μm to 31.3 μm compared with traditional lensless Fourier transform digital holography. The unique advantage of the proposed method is that the period of the grating can be programmably adjusted according to the separation condition.     

Modulation transfer function of a liquid crystal spatial light modulator

The modulation transfer function (MTF) of a pixelated liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LC-SLM) has been derived as a function of the fill factor. Based on the formula, we have investigated the dependence of the MTF on the orientations and spatial frequency of the input patterns. Furthermore, we have proposed and demonstrated a method for improving the MTF of a LC-SLM.     

Variable shape or variable diameter flattop beam tailored by using an adaptive weight FFT-based iterative algorithm and a phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator

The variable shape or variable diameter flattop beam shaping technique by using an adaptive weight FFT-based iterative algorithm (AWFFT-IA) and a phase-only liquid crystal spatial light modulator (PO-LCSLM) is demonstrated. The algorithm is used to design the phase distribution for tailoring central symmetric laser beam into the desired shape or diameter flattop beam, the PO-LCSLM serves as dynamically programmable phase filters, which depend on the designed phase distributions, to retard the incident wavefront as we would expect. The experimental results show that the technique can realize variable shape or variable diameter flattop beam shaping.     

Diffractive multi-beam surface micro-processing using 10 ps laser pulses

A high repetition rate picosecond laser system is combined with a spatial light modulator (SLM) for diffractive multiple beam processing. The effect of the zero order beam is eliminated by adding a Fresnel zone lens (FZL) to defocus the un-diffracted beam at the processing plane. Chromatic dispersion, which is evident with a large bandwidth femtosecond pulses leading to the problem of distorted hole shape is eliminated due to the much narrower spectral bandwidth, 0.1 nm at 10 ps pulselength, resulting in highly uniform intensity spots, independent of diffraction angle. In addition, high-throughput processing is demonstrated by combining the high power laser output, 2.5 W at λ ≈ 1064 nm and fast repetition rate, f ≈ 20 kHz with P > 1.2 W diffracted into 25 parallel beams. This has the effect of creating an “effective” repetition rate of 500 kHz without restrictive scan speeds.     

A ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulator encoded with orthogonal arrays and its optimized design for laser speckle reduction

In laser projectors, speckle reduction can be achieved by projecting a changing binary phase diffuser onto the screen. Here, we sequentially encoded a commercialized ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulator (FLC-SLM) with the rows of a two-level orthogonal array of order sixty-four, thus obtaining a changing binary phase diffuser. With the help of this binary phase diffuser, the subjective speckle contrast ratio on the screen is reduced from C_b=0.71 to C_a=0.1. Based on the experimental results, a simplified transparent FLC-SLM design is first proposed. This newly designed FLC-SLM has two phase modulation depths and can be driven with the passive matrix addressing scheme. Therefore, the control electronics of the proposed FLC-SLM can be significantly simplified compared to the currently used one.     

Optical phase-based beamformer using MZM SSB modulation combined with crystal polarization optics and a spatial light modulator

The performance of a widely tunable phase-based beamformer for phased array antennas using a new technique to cross-polarized the carrier and the sideband, in order to allow the phase control by means of a spatial light modulator, is experimentally demonstrated. The technique relies on the combination of single sideband amplitude modulation (SSB) using a Mach-Zehnder modulator (MZM) and birefringence (to cross-polarized the carrier and the sideband). The architecture has the potential of controlling multiple independent beams simultaneously. The beamformer feeds an eight elements array showing an insertion loss and a reset speed of around 12 dB and 70 ms, respectively. Far-field antenna patterns between 7.5 GHz and 8.5 GHz for nine elevation angles within a range of ±20° have been measured showing beam steering capability, amplitude distribution weighting as well as multibeam operation.     

Experimental validation of closed-loop adaptive optics based on a self-referencing interferometer wavefront sensor and a liquid-crystal spatial light modulator

A closed-loop adaptive optics system based on a self-referencing interferometer wavefront sensor (SRI WFS) using phase-shifting point-diffraction technique and an electrically addressed phase-only liquid-crystal spatial light modulator (LC SLM) is built and validated experimentally. The wavefront aberration of incoming beam is directly measured by analyzing four frames phase-shifted interferograms captured by a single CCD camera in two camera shots, and then by loading the conjugate function onto the SLM the wavefront aberration is corrected. The proposed scheme does not rely on any complicated control algorithm or wavefront-reconstruction algorithm and can achieve high-resolution and high-accuracy correction. Closed-loop correction results of single order Zernike aberrations and a Kolmogorov turbulence phase screen show that considerable improvements in the Strehl ratio (of greater than 0.94) is achieved.     

Three-dimensional dynamic optical manipulation by combining a diffractive optical element and a spatial light modulator

Since the introduction of computer-controlled spatial light modulators (SLMs), holographic optical tweezers have become an important tool for dynamic parallel optical manipulation. In this paper we clarify the usefulness of a new configuration for optical trapping that creates light patterns using the combination of a diffractive optical element (DOE) and an SLM. This configuration not only enables the use of the higher part of the SLM’s diffraction efficiency curve, because a simple hologram can be chosen for the SLM, but also achieves three-dimensional dynamic optical manipulation over a large spatial range. By switching blaze-like holograms displayed on the SLM, we demonstrated simultaneous transportation of three 6-μm-diameter polystyrene beads over a range of 90 μm in the vertical direction and 37.5 μm in the horizontal direction. Compared with the same manipulation executed using only the SLM, the range of this method is extended four-fold in the vertical direction and three-fold in the horizontal direction.     

Application of a liquid crystal spatial light modulator on optical roughness measurements by a speckle correlation method using two refractive indices

A system of roughness measurements using a CCD camera and a liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LCSLM) has been developed. The scattered light patterns from the surface, which is covered by liquids with several different refractive indices, are acquired by the CCD camera and stored in a frame grabber in a computer. The superposition of two arbitrary patterns is calculated by the computer and displayed on the LCSLM. It is then illuminated by coherent light to produce interference fringes of equal inclination at infinity. The surface roughness can be determined through the relationship between the fringe visibility and the difference of refractive indices. The performance of this system is estimated by experiments.