A finite element beam propagation method for simulation of liquid crystal devices

Vanbrabant, Pieter; Beeckman, Jeroen; Neyts, Kristiaan; James, Richard; Fernández, FA

doi:10.1364/oe.17.010895

Cited by 45 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…62 As a result, the 2π phase transition is not only continuous because of the finite extent of the elastic deformation, but the flyback region is also elongated due to fringing fields. [63][64][65] The flyback region is the distance over which the 2π phase jump is smeared out. It has been shown that this effect is detrimental for the steering efficiency η at large angles θ .…”

Section: Laser Beam Steeringmentioning

confidence: 99%

Liquid-crystal photonic applications

2011

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Abstract. Liquid crystals are nowadays widely used in all types of display applications. However their unique electro-optic properties also make them a suitable material for nondisplay applications. We will focus on the use of liquid crystals in different photonic components: optical filters and switches, beam-steering devices, spatial light modulators, integrated devices based on optical waveguiding, lasers, and optical nonlinear components. Both the basic operating principles as well as the recent state-of-the art are discussed. C 2011 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).[ DOI: 10.1117/1.3565046] Subject terms: liquid crystals; photonic applications; review; liquid-crystal lasers; spatial light modulators; tunable lenses; nematicons; optical nonlinearity.Paper 100913SSR received Nov. 5, 2010; revised manuscript received Jan. 11, 2011; accepted for publication Jan. 13, 2011; published online Jun. 14, 2011. IntroductionLiquid crystals (LCs) are organic materials that are liquid but that show a certain degree of ordering (positional and/or orientational). With this definition, many materials can be classified as liquid crystals, but the majority of liquid crystals that are used in photonic applications are of the thermotropic type. Thermotropic means that the liquid-crystal phase exists within a certain temperature interval (in contrast to lyotropic materials for which the material is liquid-crystal within a certain concentration range). Various types of thermotropic liquid-crystal materials exist, and many different mesophases have been discovered in the last decades: nematic, smectic A, smectic C, columnar, blue phases, and many many more. The diversity of liquid-crystal materials is huge, but this diversity is even overshadowed by the number of applications in which liquid crystals are used nowadays. The majority of applications are related to informationdisplay applications. Liquid crystals have conquered the major market share in different display application areas: television screens, laptop screens, screens in mobile phones, etc. Only in projection displays does a tough competitor exist, namely microelectromechanical systems or licenced by Texas Instruments: Digital light processing. Organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) are the obvious next generation technology that could overtake the LC domination, but today OLED displays have not penetrated the market and only the future will tell if they will. In this review article, we will focus on nondisplay applications, but because we cannot go too broad, we restrict ourselves to photonic applications in which the light is actively manipulated by the LC. In this review article, a certain external influence (surface anchoring, electric fields, optical fields) is used to (re)orient the LC in a certain way. In turn, the LC then changes the light that is propagating through it. Of course, as in every review article, it is impossible to list all the fascinating new scientific results or breakthroughs. Therefore, the authors apologize for not i...

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Section: Laser Beam Steeringmentioning

confidence: 99%

Liquid-crystal photonic applications

2011

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“…As described in, Ref. 27, it is possible to derive a recurrence scheme for the transverse field by eliminating φ z from the second row of Eq. (4) and substituting the result into the first row of this equation.…”

Section: Wide Angle Beam Propagation Algorithmmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…26 Recently, a full-vector wide angle finite element beam propagation method dedicated to the optical analysis of liquid crystal devices has been presented. 27 In this paper, the modesolver and BPM are compared for the optical analysis of liquid crystal waveguides to illustrate the consistency of both methods and to show they are both attractive for modeling and designing LC waveguides. The basic principles of the finite element modesolver and BPM are reviewed in Sec.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Finite element optical modeling of liquid crystal waveguides

et al. 2011

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Abstract.A finite element modesolver and beam propagation (BPM) algorithm are applied to the optical analysis of liquid crystal waveguides. Both approaches are used in combination with advanced liquid crystal calculations and include a full dielectric tensor in solving the Helmholtz equation to model the liquid crystal behavior properly. Simulation of the beam propagation in a waveguide with tunable liquid crystal cladding layer illustrates the coupling of a Gaussian beam to the fundamental waveguide mode obtained with the modesolver. Excellent quantitative agreement between both approaches illustrates the potential of these methods for the design of advanced devices. The high accuracy of the BPM algorithm for wide angle propagation, essential in the analysis of high index contrast waveguides, is illustrated for angles up to 40 deg. C 2011Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE).

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“…Second, part of the fringing fields occurs on the pixel boundary, were some of the loss has already been accounted for by the interpixel gap. As the size of the interpixel gap is smaller than the wavelength and the propagation distance within the liquid crystal considerably more, the effect of the interpixel gap cannot be easily accounted for (it can be accounted for by solving the Maxwell equations within the anisotropic liquid crystal and the metal electrodes [21]). Fringing fields do change the shape of the sinc envelope on the output plane, as can be seen from Fig.…”

Section: Fringing Fields and Liquid Crystal Deformationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multicasting optical interconnects using liquid crystal over silicon devices

2011

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This work presents the characteristics and expected capabilities of an optical interconnect that uses a diffractive liquid crystal over silicon (LCOS) device as a routing element. Such an interconnect may be used in a neighborhood's optical network to distribute high definition television, thus avoiding an electronic or optical transmitter for each user. The optimal characteristics of the LCOS device are calculated in terms of pixel number and silicon area and found to be feasible with today's technology. Finally, its performance in terms of optical efficiency and number of output ports is evaluated and found suitable for a neighborhood with hundreds of households.

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A finite element beam propagation method for simulation of liquid crystal devices

Cited by 45 publications

References 19 publications

Liquid-crystal photonic applications

Liquid-crystal photonic applications

Finite element optical modeling of liquid crystal waveguides

Multicasting optical interconnects using liquid crystal over silicon devices

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