Direct-write laser-assisted patterning of form birefringence in wave plates fabricated by glancing-angle deposition

The development of optics that provide spatial control of birefringence could enable better control of laser beam polarization, but available solutions are limited. Here we demonstrate a method to locally modify the birefringence of wave plates fabricated by glancing-angle deposition. The method emp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Optica 2023-06, Vol.10 (6), p.657
Main Authors: Mireles, Marcela, Hoffman, Brittany N., MacNally, Sara, Smith, Christopher C., Lakshmanan, Sanjay N., Lambropoulos, John C., Rigatti, Amy L., Demos, Stavros G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ENGINEERING
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Summary:The development of optics that provide spatial control of birefringence could enable better control of laser beam polarization, but available solutions are limited. Here we demonstrate a method to locally modify the birefringence of wave plates fabricated by glancing-angle deposition. The method employs localized melting of the anisotropic microstructure in a vacuum environment to alter the local birefringence. We demonstrate that this process is only possible under high vacuum to avoid trapping air within the melt zone. The direct-write method presented here can be readily utilized for coatings exhibiting form birefringence of virtually any chemical composition, size, and format.
ISSN:2334-2536
2334-2536
DOI:10.1364/OPTICA.487263