Optically-addressable liquid crystal laser beam shapers employing photoalignment layer materials and technologies  (Conference Presentation)

Kenneth L. Marshall; Tanya Z. Kosc; Mark Ordway; Lingyan Guo; Megan Johnston; Alexander Callahan; Hayden Carder

doi:10.1117/12.2320741

18 September 2018 Optically-addressable liquid crystal laser beam shapers employing photoalignment layer materials and technologies (Conference Presentation)

Kenneth L. Marshall, Tanya Z. Kosc, Mark Ordway, Lingyan Guo, Megan Johnston, Alexander Callahan, Hayden Carder

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 10735, Liquid Crystals XXII; 107350W (2018) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2320741
Event: SPIE Organic Photonics + Electronics, 2018, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

The ability to reversibly photo-pattern an infinite variety of high-quality, high-resolution alignment domain orientations and shapes makes photoswitchable LC devices ideal candidates for laser applications where electro-optical spatial-light modulators cannot be used due to their low laser-damage resistance (typically, 230 mJ/cm2 at 2.4 ns, 5 Hz at 1053 nm). Such all-optical devices also have the advantage of their inherent simplicity (no electrical interconnects or driver electronics) and convenient in-system write/erase capability. Azobenzene-based photoswitchable alignment materials are excellent candidates for such devices by virtue of their high laser damage thresholds at 1053 nm, which range from 24-66 J/cm2 (1.4 ns pulse). In this work, LC devices fabricated with commercial azobenzene photoalignment layers were exposed to a series of varying optical patterns that were sequentially written, erased and re-written into the assembled devices using either contact photolithography with a xenon/mercury high-pressure arc lamp source or a 433 nm diode laser. These devices were capable of being written, erased and re-written in excess of 30 times without showing significant image burn-in or loss of patterning resolution. Amplitude beam shaping of a 500 mW Nd;YLF 1053 nm laser beam in a laboratory bench-top setup was demonstrated using photoswitchable LC devices in which the beam-shaping profile had been written using the 433 nm diode laser setup and photolithography mask in a bench-top image relaying setup. Similar optical patterning experiments conducted on a series of new photoalignment materials synthesized in-house have shown one example in which written optical patterns have remained stable for more than 4 months under ambient conditions.

Conference Presentation

Citation Download Citation

Kenneth L. Marshall, Tanya Z. Kosc, Mark Ordway, Lingyan Guo, Megan Johnston, Alexander Callahan, and Hayden Carder "Optically-addressable liquid crystal laser beam shapers employing photoalignment layer materials and technologies (Conference Presentation)", Proc. SPIE 10735, Liquid Crystals XXII, 107350W (18 September 2018); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2320741

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