Spatial light modulation for femtosecond laser manufacturing:Current developments and challenges

Since the invention of lasers,spatial-light-modulated laser processing has become a powerful tool for various applications.It enables multidimensional and dynamic modulation of the laser beam,which significantly improves the processing efficiency,accuracy,and flexibility,and presents wider prospects over traditional mechanical technologies for machining three-dimensional,hard,brittle,or transparent materials.In this review,we introduce:(1)The role of spatial light modulation technology in the development of femtosecond laser manufacturing;(2)the structured light generated by spatial light modulation and its generation methods;and(3)representative applications of spatial-light-modulated femtosecond laser manufacturing,including aberration correction,parallel processing,focal field engineering,and polarization control.Finally,we summarize the present challenges in the field and possible future research.

A high-contrast imaging coronagraph for segmented-mirror large aperture telescopes using a spatial light modulator

The primary mirrors of current and future large telescopes always employ a segmented mirror configuration.The small but non-negligible gaps between neighboring segments cause additional diffraction,which restricts the performance of high-contrast coronagraph.To solve this problem,we propose a coronagraph system based on a single liquid crystal spatial light modulator(SLM).This spatial light modulator is used for amplitude apodization,and its feasibility and potential performance are demonstrated using a laboratory setup using the stochastic parallel gradient descent(SPGD)algorithm to control the spatial light modulator,which is based on point spread function(PSF)sensing and evaluation and optimized for maximum contrast in the discovery working area as a merit function.The system delivers a contrast in the order of 10−6,and shows excellent potential to be used in current and future large aperture telescopes,both on the ground and in space.

Ultra-broadband spatial light modulation with dual-resonance coupled epsilon-near-zero materials

It has been found that the dielectric constants of transparent conductive oxides(TCOs)can be adjusted in an extremely large range by tuning the carrier density.Due to the remarkable light confinement property of the epsilon-near-zero(ENZ)effect of TCOs,it has attracted extensive interests of light modulation.However,the operation wavelength bandwidth is usually limited by optical resonance that is applied to enhance the light-TCOs interaction.In this work,a dual-resonance light coupling scheme is proposed to expand the modulation depth-bandwidth product with almost one order-of-magnitude improvement.In a metallic subwavelength grating structure with deep trenches backed by a ground plane,the ENZ mode can be coupled to both magnetic resonance and Fabry-Perot resonance respectively by tuning the bias.Decent light modulation can be obtained in a large operation wavelength band covering two resonances by optimizing the dual-resonance configuration.Such a reconfigurable efficient broadband modulation is important for robust communication link and possesses remarkable capacity for wavelength division multiplexing.

Simulation and optimization of spatial light modulation of twisted-nematic liquid crystal display

The approaches to obtaining desired intensity or phase modulation by twisted-nematic liquid crystal display （TN-LCD） have been extensively studied based on the knowledge of the LCD＇s internal structure parameters. Generally, the TN-LCD placed between two linear polarizers （P） produces coupled intensity and phase modulation. To obtain the commonly used phase-only modulation, quarter wave plates （QWPs） are often used in front of and/or behind the LCD. Here we present a method to optimize the optical modulation properties of the TN-LCD to obtain phase-only modulation in the configuration of P-QWP-LCD-QWP-P each with proper orientation. Our method is based on the macroscopical Jones matrix descriptions for the LCD, the QWPs, and the linear polarizers. Through Jones matrix calculations, the orientations of the polarizers and QWPs can be optimized to satisfy differently desired modulation demands. In contrast to the traditional method, which requires knowledge of the LCD＇s internal structure parameters, our method simplified the complicated theory analysis and can work in the absence of information on the LCD＇s internal structure parameters, which are usually not available for the commercial products.

Repaired morphology of CO_(2)laser rapid ablation mitigation of fused silica and its influence on downstream light modulation

The threat of cascading damage to downstream components caused by the light modulation intensification of laser repaired morphology on the surface of fused silica optics cannot be ignored in high-power laser systems.This paper uses the angular spectrum diffraction theory based on the analysis of repaired surface morphology of CO_(2)laser rapid ablation mitigation to study the influence of different repaired morphologies on the downstream 355 nm laser transmission.Studies show that the arc-shaped laser processing lines on the repaired surface are formed by the residual height superposition of the material after laser scanning of two adjacent layers,and the short-pulse laser can substantially suppress the heat-affected zone of the repaired area.The offaxis ring caustic and on-axis hotspot are sequentially generated in the downstream modulated light fields of the conical repaired sites with different diameters.A secondary peak with modulation larger than 3 emerges downstream of the modulation curve.Meanwhile,the maximum modulation and the secondary peak increase with the diameter and cone angle of the repaired site,and the position of the secondary peak appears farther away from the rear surface.The modulations of three repaired sites with cone angles of 15°,20°,and 25°can finally be stabilized below 3.Overall,the downstream optics should be installed far away from the positions where the maximum modulation and the secondary peak emerge.Additionally,the maximum value and the secondary peak of the downstream light modulation of double repaired sites are larger than that of the single repaired site,and both rise as the repaired sizes increase.Thus,large-scale and large-size repairing of multiple surface damages in the same area should be avoided in the laser repairing of fused silica.

Superpixel-Based Complex Field Modulation Using a Digital Micromirror Device for Focusing Light through Scattering Media

We present a digital micromirror device（DMD） based superpixel method for focusing light through scattering media by modulating the complex field of incident light. Firstly, we numerically and experimentally investigate focusing light through a scattering sample using the superpixel methods with different target complex fields.Then, single-point and multiple-point focusing experiments are performed using this superpixel-based complex modulation method. In our experiment, up to 71.5% relative enhancement is realized. The use of the DMDbased superpixel method for the control of the complex field of incident light opens an avenue to improve the enhancement of focusing light through scattering media.

A review of liquid crystal spatial light modulators:devices and applications

Spatial light modulators,as dynamic flat-panel optical devices,have witnessed rapid development over the past two decades,concomitant with the advancements in micro-and opto-electronic integration technology.In particular,liquid-crystal spatial light modulator(LC-SLM)technologies have been regarded as versatile tools for generating arbitrary optical fields and tailoring all degrees of freedom beyond just phase and amplitude.These devices have gained significant interest in the nascent field of structured light in space and time,facilitated by their ease of use and real-time light manipulation,fueling both fundamental research and practical applications.Here we provide an overview of the key working principles of LC-SLMs and review the significant progress made to date in their deployment for various applications,covering topics as diverse as beam shaping and steering,holography,optical trapping and tweezers,measurement,wavefront coding,optical vortex,and quantum optics.Finally,we conclude with an outlook on the potential opportunities and technical challenges in this rapidly developing field.

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 41μm to produce the paraboloid wavefront with the peak to valley accuracy better than λ/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.

3D fluorescence emission difference microscopy based on spatial light modulator

We report three-dimensional fluorescence emission difference(3D-FED)microscopy using a spatial light modulator(SLM).Zero phase,0–2
vortex phase and binary 0-pi phase are loaded on the SLM to generate the corresponding solid,doughnut and z-axis hollow excitation spot,respectively.Our technique achieves super-resolved image by subtracting three di®erently acquired images with proper subtractive factors.Detailed theoretical analysis and simulation tests are proceeded to testify the performance of 3D-FED.Also,the improvement of lateral and axial resolution is demonstrated by imaging 100 nm°uorescent beads.The experiment yields lateral resolution of 140 nm and axial resolution of approximate 380 nm.

Fast generation of controllable equal-intensity four beams based on isosceles triangle multilevel phase grating realized by liquid crystal spatial light modulator

Liquid crystal spatial light modulator （LCSLM） realizing equal-intensity multiple beams often has some features, i.e., phase valley between two adjacent pixels, flybaek region when phase decreases immediately from 2~r to 0, and inevitable backplane curvature, which are different from those of most conventional diffractive optical elements （DOEs）, such as static DOEs. For optimal intensity uniformity, equal-intensity multi-beam generation must be considered for these artifacts. We present a tunable-grating method in which the intensity uniformity can be improved by considering the LCSLM artifacts. For instance, tuning phase modulation depth of the grating, called isosceles triangle multilevel phase grating （ITMPG）, can be used not only to improve the intensity uniformity, but also to fast steer four beams with narrow beamwidths, determined by the same effective aperture of ITMPG. Improved intensity uniformity and high relative diffraction efficiency are demonstrated through experiments with phase-only LCSLM.

High-voltage super-junction lateral double-diffused metal-oxide semiconductor with a partial lightly doped pillar

A novel super-junction lateral double-diffused metal-oxide semiconductor （SJ-LDMOS） with a partial lightly doped P pillar （PD） is proposed. Firstly, the reduction in the partial P pillar charges ensures the charge balance and suppresses the substrate-assisted depletion effect. Secondly, the new electric field peak produced by the P/P junction modulates the surface electric field distribution. Both of these result in a high breakdown voltage （BV）. In addition, due to the same conduction paths, the specific on-resistance （Ron,sp） of the PD SJ-LDMOS is approximately identical to the conventional SJ-LDMOS. Simulation results indicate that the average value of the surface lateral electric field of the PD SJ-LDMOS reaches 20 V/μm at a 15 μm drift length, resulting in a BV of 300 V.

Steering light into logic patterns with two-dimensional cascaded multimode waveguide

Steering light into logic patterns with two-dimensional cascaded multimode waveguide is demonstrated. By employing the imaging properties of 2D multimode interference （MMI） and partial phase modulation method, the design ideas and the implementing methods of the 2^（2×2） bits type spatial logic steering are discussed; therefore the structure of logical pattern is proposed. Numerical simulation is carried out to verify the design in detail by using the beam propagation method. It is expected to realize logic coders by using the integrated optical methods and exploit their potential applications in the field of optical logic.

Generation of Mathieu beams using angular pupil modulation

By using an amplitude-type spatial light modulator to load angular spectrum of Mathieu function distribution along a narrow annular pupils, the Durnin’s experimental setup is extended to generate various types of Mathieu beams. As a special type of Mathieu beams, Bessel beams are also generated using this optical setup. Furthermore, the optical morphology of the Mathieu beams family are also presented and analyzed.

Calibration and data restoration of light field modulated imaging spectrometer

A light field modulated imaging spectrometer （LFMIS） can acquire the spatial-spectral datacube of targets of interest or a scene in a single shot. The spectral information of a point target is imaged on the pixels covered by a microlens. The pixels receive spectral information from different spectral filters to the diffraction and misalignments of the optical components. In this paper, we present a linear spectral multiplexing model of the acquired target spectrum. A calibration method is proposed for calibrating the center wavelengths and bandwidths of channels of an LFMIS system based on the liner-variable filter （LVF） and for determining the spectral multiplexing matrix. In order to improve the accuracy of the restored spectral data, we introduce a reconstruction algorithm based on the total least square （TLS） approach. Simulation and experimental results confirm the performance of the spectrum reconstruction algorithm and validate the feasibility of the proposed calibrating scheme.

Multi-channel generation of vortex beams with controllable polarization states and orbital angular momentum

Optical vortices with tunable polarization states and topological charges are widely investigated in various physical systems and practical devices for high-capacity optical communication.However,this kind of structured light beams is usually generated using several polarization and spatial phase devices,which decreases the configurability of optical systems.Here,we have designed a kind of polarized optical multi-vortices generator based on the Stokes-Mueller formalism and cross-phase modulation.In our scheme,multi-channel generation of polarized vortex beams can be realized through a single optical element and a single-input Gaussian beam.The polarization states and orbital angular momentum of the generated light beams are all-optically controllable.Furthermore,the proposed polarized optical multi-vortices generator has also been demonstrated experimentally through one-step holographic recording in an azobenzene liquid-crystalline film and the experimental results agree with theoretical analysis.

Experimental implementation of phase triplicator gratings in a spatial light modulator

In this work,we compare different methods for implementing a triplicator,a phase grating that generates three equiintense diffraction orders.The design with optimal efficiency features a continuous phase profile,which cannot be easily reproduced,and is typically affected by quantization.We compare its performance with binary and sinusoidal phase profiles.We also analyze the effect of quantizing the phase levels.Finally,a random approach is adopted to eliminate the additional harmonic orders.In all cases,a liquid-crystal-on-silicon spatial light modulator is employed to experimentally verify and compare the different approaches.

Two localized CO_2 laser treatment methods for mitigation of UV damage growth in fused silica

Two methods：high-power,short-time,single-shot irradiation（Method A） and low-power,long-time,multi-shot irradiation（Method B） are investigated to mitigate the UV damage growth in fused silica by using a 10.6-μm CO2 laser.To verify the mitigation effect of the two methods,the laser induced damage thresholds（LIDTs） of the mitigated sites are tested with a 355-nm,6.4-ns Nd：YAG laser,and the light modulation of the mitigation sites are tested with a 351-nm continuous Nd：YLF laser.The mitigated damaged sites treated with the two methods have almost the same LIDTs,which can recover to the level of pristine material.Compared with Method A,Method B produces mitigated sites with low crater depth and weak light modulation.In addition,there is no raised rim or re-deposited debris formed around the crater edge for Method B.Theoretical calculation is utilized to evaluate the central temperature of the CO2 laser beam irradiated zone and the radius of the crater.It is indicated that the calculated results are consistent with the experimental results.

Matter-wave interference in an axial triple-well optical dipole trap

This paper proposes a scheme of axial triple-well optical dipole trap by employing a simple optical system composed of a circular cosine grating and a lens. Three optical wells separated averagely by -37 μm were created when illuminating by a YAG laser with power 1 mW. These wells with average trapping depth -0.5 μK and volume -74 μm^3 are suitable to trap and manipulate an atomic Bose-Einstein condensation （BEC）. Due to a controllable grating implemented by a spatial light modulator, an evolution between a triple-well trap and a single-well one is achievable by adjusting the height of potential barrier between adjacent wells. Based on this novel triple-well potentials, the loading and splitting of BEC, as well as the interference between three freely expanding BECs, are also numerically stimulated within the framework of mean-field treatment. By fitting three cosine functions with three Gaussian envelopes to interference fringe, the information of relative phases among three condensates is extracted.

Advanced modulation formats for underwater visible light communications [Invited]

In this paper, we present a detailed comparison of applying three advanced modulation formats including carrierless amplitude and phase modulation（CAP）, orthogonal frequency division multiplexing（OFDM）, and discrete Fourier transform spread orthogonal frequency division multiplexing（DFT-S OFDM） in underwater visible light communication（UVLC） systems. Cascaded post-equalization schemes are suggested to compensate the system impairments. For the first time, a two-level post-equalizer is presented to mitigate the nonlinear effect and improve the system performance of UVLC. The first post-equalization is based on a novel recursive least square Volterra. These modulation formats are all experimentally demonstrated with corresponding digital signal processing（DSP） algorithms. The experimental results show that single carrier modulations including CAP and DFT-S OFDM can outperform OFDM. Our experiment results show that up to 3 Gb/s over a 1.2 m underwater visible light transmission can be achieved by using DFT-S OFDM 64 QAM and CAP-64. The measured bit error rate is well under the hard decision-forward error correction（HD-FEC） threshold of 3.8 × 10;.

Controllable optical multi-well trap and its optical lattices using compounded cosine patterns

This paper proposes a flexible scheme to form various optical multi-well traps for cold atoms or molecules by using a simple optical system composed of an compounded amplitude cosine-only grating and a single lens illuminated by a plane light wave or a Gaussian beam. Dynamic manipulation and evolution of multi-well trap can be easily implemented by controlling the modulation frequency of the cosine patterns. It also discusses how to expand this multi-well trap to two-dimensional lattices with single- or multi-well trap by using an orthogonally or non-orthogonally modulated grating, as well as using incoherent multi-beam illumination, and these results show that all the symmetric structures of two-dimensional Bravais lattices can be obtained facilely by using proposed scheme.