Thomas Swan & Co. Limited

Melanie Holmes

William Alden Crossland

Brian Robertson

Timothy David Wilkinson

Ilias Manolis

Maura Redmond

Adrian Perrin Janssen

Kim Leong Tan

Steven Warr

A modular routing node includes a single input port and a plurality of output ports. The modular routing node is arranged to produce a plurality of different deflections and uses small adjustments to compensate for wavelength differences and alignment tolerances in an optical system. An optical device is arranged to receive a multiplex of many optical signals at different wavelengths, to separate the optical signals into at least two groups, and to process at least one of the groups adaptively.

Optical processing

A device and method for controlling light by wavelength in a device with a switch plane and a dispersion plane uses optics providing an imaging function in the dispersion plane, and a Fourier transform function in the switch plane, so as to enable crosstalk to be reduced.

Optical device and methods

Apparatus and methods are described for measuring amplitude and phase variations in a spatially coherent beam of light. A beam of coherent light is made incident upon a spatial array of phase modulating elements displaying a pixellated first phase distribution. In a measuring region of said spatial array, the phase distribution is changed to a new value while retaining the first phase distribution outside the measuring region, for example by flashing a single pixel. The change in intensity resulting from the change in phase distribution is then determined.

Optical measuring system

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.

Apparatus and methods are described for of measuring amplitude and phase variations in a spatially coherent beam of light. A beam of coherent light is made incident upon a spatial array of phase modulating elements displaying a pixellated first phase distribution. In a measuring region of said spatial array, the phase distribution is changed to a new value while retaining the first phase distribution outside the measuring region, for example by flashing a single pixel. The change in intensity resulting from the change in phase distribution is then determined.

A beam steering device uses a liquid crystal with an array of back electrodes. Voltages are applied to the array to cause a desired phase distribution across the array, the distribution being selected to steer a beam incident upon the array into a desired direction. Reflective elements are disposed to reflect light incident in the spaces between the electrodes to reduce losses and to smooth the transitions in phase between adjacent electrodes.

Beam steering device

An optical switch uses two ferroelectric liquid crystal spatial light modulators () with an interconnect region in between. The switch uses bulk lenses () to focus light from an input fibre array () to a first spatial light modulator (), and from the second spatial light modulator () to an output array (). Each spatial light modulator displays a respective hologram selected from a previously calculated set, to cause a desired switching of light from the input fibre array to the output array.

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Woodbridge, United Kingdom

Melanie Holmes