Bridging optics and electronics
New spatial light modulator marries optical and electronic realms

Date:
October 14, 2021
Source:
Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Summary:
Researchers have developed a simple spatial light modulator made
from gold electrodes covered by a thin film of electro-optical
material that changes its optical properties in response to
electric signals.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Spatial light modulators are common optical components found in everything
from home theater projectors to cutting-edge laser imaging and optical computing.

These components can control various aspects of a light, such as intensity
or and phase , pixel by pixel. Most spatial light modulators today rely
on mechanical moving parts to achieve this control but that approach
results in bulky and slow optical devices.


==========================================================================
Now, researchers at the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering
and Applied Sciences, in collaboration with a team from Washington
University, have developed a simple spatial light modulator made from
gold electrodes covered by a thin film of electro-optical material that
changes its optical properties in response to electric signals.

This is a first step towards more compact, high-speed and precise spatial
light modulators that could one day be used in everything from imaging
to virtual reality, quantum communications and sensing.

The research is published in Nature Communications.

"This simple spatial light modulator is a bridge between the realms of
optics and electronics," said Cristina Benea-Chelmus, a postdoctoral
fellow at SEAS and first author of the paper.

"When you interface optics with electronics, you can use the entire
backbone of electronics that has been developed to open up new
functionalities in optics." The researchers used electro-optic materials designed by chemists Delwin L.

Elder and Larry R. Dalton at the University of Washington. When an
electric signal is applied to this material, the refractive index of the material changes. By dividing the material into pixels, the researchers
could control the intensity of light in each pixel separately with
interlocking electrodes.

With only a small amount of power, the device can dramatically change
the intensity of light at each pixel and can efficiently modulate light
across the visible spectrum.

The researchers used the new spatial light modulators for image projection
and remote sensing by single-pixel imaging.

"We consider our work to mark the beginning of an up-and-coming field of
hybrid organic-nanostructured electro-optics with broad applications in imaging, remote control, environmental monitoring, adaptive optics and
laser ranging," said Federico Capasso, Robert L. Wallace Professor of
Applied Physics and Vinton Hayes Senior Research Fellow in Electrical Engineering, senior author of the paper.

Harvard's Office of Technology Development has protected the intellectual property associated with this project and is exploring commercialization opportunities.

The research was co-authored by Maryna L. Meretska, Delwin L. Elder,
Michele Tamagnone and Larry R. Dalton. It was supported in part
by the Office of Naval Research (ONR) MURI program, under grant
no. N00014-20-1-2450.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Harvard_John_A._Paulson_School_of_Engineering_and_Applied
Sciences. Original written by Leah Burrows. Note: Content may be edited
for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Ileana-Cristina Benea-Chelmus, Maryna L. Meretska, Delwin L. Elder,
Michele Tamagnone, Larry R. Dalton, Federico Capasso. Electro-optic
spatial light modulator from an engineered organic layer. Nature
Communications, 2021; 12 (1) DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-26035-y ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211014131152.htm

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