Optical processing
First Claim
1. a method of operating an optical device comprising an SLM having a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements, the method comprising delineating groups of individual phase-modulating elements;
- selecting, from stored control data, control data for each group of phase-modulating elements;
generating from the respective selected control data a respective hologram at each group of phase-modulating elements; and
varying the delineation of the groups and/or the selection of control data whereby upon illumination of said groups by respective light beams, respective emergent light beams from the groups are controllable independently of each other;
1 Assignment
0 Petitions
Accused Products
Abstract
To operate an optical device comprising an SLM with a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements groups of individual phase-modulating elements are delineated, and control data selected from a store for each delineated group of phase-modulating elements. The selected control data are used to generate holograms at each group and one or both of the delineation of the groups and the selection of control data is/are varied. In this way upon illumination of the groups by light beams, light beams emergent from the groups are controllable independently of each other.
-
Citations
28 Claims
-
1. a method of operating an optical device comprising an SLM having a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements, the method comprising
delineating groups of individual phase-modulating elements; -
selecting, from stored control data, control data for each group of phase-modulating elements;
generating from the respective selected control data a respective hologram at each group of phase-modulating elements; and
varying the delineation of the groups and/or the selection of control data whereby upon illumination of said groups by respective light beams, respective emergent light beams from the groups are controllable independently of each other;
- View Dependent Claims (3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10)
-
-
2. A method of operating an optical device according to clam 1, wherein control of said light beams is selected from the group comprising:
control of direction, control of power, focussing, aberration compensation, sampling and beam shaping.
-
11. An optical device comprising an SLM and a control circuit, the SLM having a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements and the control circuit having a store constructed and arranged to hold plural items of control data, the control circuit being constructed and arranged to delineate groups of individual phase-modulating elements, to select, from stored control data, control data for each group of phase-modulating elements, and to generate from the respective selected control data a respective hologram at each group of phase-modulating elements,
wherein the control circuit is further constructed and arranged to vary the delineation of the groups and/or the selection of control data, whereby upon illumination of said groups by respective light beams, respective emergent light beams from the groups are controllable independently of each other.
-
14. An optical routing device having at least first and second SLMs and a control circuit, the first SLM being disposed to receive respective light beams from an input fibre array, and the second SLM being disposed to receive emergent light from the first SLM and to provide light to an output fibre array, the first and second SLMs each having a respective two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements and the control circuit having a store constructed and arranged to hold plural items of control data, the control circuit being constructed and arranged to delineate groups of individual phase-modulating elements, to select, from stored control data, control data for each group of phase-modulating elements, and to generate from the respective selected control data a respective hologram at each group of phase-modulating elements,
wherein the control circuit is further constructed and arranged, to vary the delineation of the groups and/or the selection of control data whereby upon illumination of said groups by respective light beams, respective emergent light beams from the groups are controllable independently of each other.
-
15. A device for shaping one or more light beams in which the or each light beam is incident upon a respective group of pixels of a two-dimensional SLM, and the pixels of the or each respective group are controlled so that the corresponding beams emerging from the SLM are shaped as required.
-
16. An optical device comprising one or more optical inputs at respective locations, a diffraction grating constructed and arranged to receive light from the or each optical input, a focussing device and a continuous array of phase modulating elements, the diffraction grating and the array of phase modulating elements being disposed in the focal plane of the focussing device whereby diverging light from a single point on the diffraction grating passes via the focussing device to form beams at the array of phase modulating elements, the device further comprising one or more optical output at respective locations spatially separate location from the or each optical input, whereby the diffraction grating is constructed and arranged to output light to the or each optical output.
- 17. A method of filtering light comprising applying a beam of said light to a diffraction grating whereby emerging light from the grating is angularly dispersed by wavelength, forming respective parallel beams from said emerging light by passing the emerging light to a focussing device having the grating at its focal plane, passing the respective parallel beams to an SLM at the focal plane of the focussing device, the SLM having a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements, selectively reflecting light from different locations of said SLM and passing said reflected light to said focussing device and then to said grating.
-
19. An optical add/drop multiplexer having a reflective SLM having a two-dimensional array of controllable phase-modulating elements, a diffraction device and a focussing device wherein light beams from a common point on the diffraction device are mutually parallel when incident upon the SLM, and wherein the SLM displays respective holograms at locations of incidence of light to provide emergent beams whose direction deviates from the direction of specular reflection.
- 20. A test or monitoring device comprising an SLM having a two-dimensional array of pixels, and operable to cause incident light to emerge in a direction deviating from the specular direction, the device having light sensors at predetermined locations arranged to provide signals indicative of said emerging light.
-
22. A power control device for one or more beams of light in which the or each beam is incident on respective groups of pixels of a two-dimensional SLM, and power-control holograms are applied to the respective groups so that the emergent beams have power reduced by comparison to the respective incident beams.
-
23. An optical routing module having at least one input and at least two outputs and operable to select between the outputs, the module comprising a two dimensional SLM having an array of pixels, with circuitry constructed and arranged to display holograms on the pixels to route beams of different frequency to respective outputs.
- 24. A routing device having an input and plural outputs, the input constructed and arranged to receive a light beam having plural wavelengths, the device comprising an optical device for selecting the wavelengths of the input beam to appear in the outputs, wherein each output may contain any desired set of the plural wavelengths.
-
27. A routing device having plural input signals and an output, the output constructed and arranged to deliver a signal having plural wavelengths, the device comprising a device for combining the wavelengths from the input signals to appear in the output, wherein each input signal may contain any desired set of the plural wavelengths of the output.
-
28. A method of filtering light comprising spatially distributing the light by wavelength across an array of phase-modulating elements to form plural beams, delineating a group of said phase-modulating elements to be aligned with the centre frequency of a desired channel whereby the group truncates the beams according to wavelength, controlling the group to provide images of the truncated light beams incident on the group at a selected output waveguide wherein the original centres of the truncated light beams are substantially coincident with the centre of the output waveguide.
Specification