Combined blazed grating/Gires-Tournois resonator for liquid crystal beam switching

A new concept of liquid crystal (LC) beam switching structure is introduced and analyzed. The main advantages of this device are its ability to perform triple-state beam switching, using a single uniform electrode as well as its reduced LC thickness, leading to a potentially fast response. The devic...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of lightwave technology 2006-02, Vol.24 (2), p.962-969
Main Authors: Apter, B., Efron, U.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Applied sciences
Asymmetric Fabry-PÉrot resonator
Beam switching
Devices
diffraction
Diffraction efficiency
Diffraction gratings
Electrodes
Exact sciences and technology
Gires-Tournois resonator
Gratings
Gratings (spectra)
Laser beams
liquid crystal (LC) devices
Liquid crystal devices
Liquid crystals
Optical diffraction
Optical refraction
Optical resonators
Optical scattering
optical switch
Optical variables control
Resonators
Switching and signalling
Systems, networks and services of telecommunications
Telecommunications
Telecommunications and information theory
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Description
Summary:A new concept of liquid crystal (LC) beam switching structure is introduced and analyzed. The main advantages of this device are its ability to perform triple-state beam switching, using a single uniform electrode as well as its reduced LC thickness, leading to a potentially fast response. The device is also aimed at overcoming the problems associated with the use of LC index mismatch in a hybrid surface-relief blazed grating. The configuration is based on an embedded blazed diffractive grating, composed of two optical substrates with different refractive indexes and a uniform-thickness LC layer, enclosed in a Gires-Tournois resonator. It is shown that this structure, which also removes the difficulty of LC alignment in hybrid blazed LC-glass structures, allows a dynamic switching of a laser beam with a diffraction efficiency exceeding 67%.
ISSN:0733-8724
1558-2213
DOI:10.1109/JLT.2005.862449