SBIR Phase I: High Performance Laser Deflector Using Stoichiometric Electro-Optic Materials

这个小企业创新研究（SBIR）第一阶段项目将利用电光（EO）效应，即电场改变非线性材料的折射率，以一种新颖的方式创造出一种具有非常有利性能的光束偏转器，用于激光束扫描和转向。通过新的多级设计已经实现了大角度偏转，并且最近已经证明了10 ghz的扫描速率。这些设计现在可以在商业产品中执行，使用最新的制造进展来改进非线性材料。除了使商业制造成为可能之外，这些新的化学计量材料应该赋予激光偏转器有利的性能，包括改进的功率处理和增加的红外和紫外透明度。这项工作有望推动目前尚未商业化的电光设备的发展。预计电光偏转器将在激光扫描仪市场上竞争相当成功，在非常小的设备中提供卓越的扫描速率，偏转范围，偏转效率和功率处理性能。所提出的EO偏转器具有快速扫描速率和高功率处理能力，可用于遥感应用中的波束扫描。偏转器应用于克服自由空间通信和可变光衰减器的现有限制。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will use the electro-optic (EO) effect, in which an electric field changes the index of refraction of a nonlinear material, in a novel manner to create a beam deflector with very favorable properties for laser beam scanning and steering. Large angle deflections have been achieved through new multi-stage designs, and 10-GHz scan rates have recently been demonstrated. These designs can now be executed in a commercial product using recent advances in fabrication to improved nonlinear materials. In addition to making commercial manufacturing possible, these new stoichiometric materials should impart favorable properties to a laser deflector, including improved power handling and increased infrared and UV transparency. This work is expected to advance the state-of-the-art with an electro-optic device that has so far not been commercially available. Electro-optic deflectors are predicted to compete quite successfully in the laser scanner market, offering superior performance in scan rate, deflection range, deflection efficiency, and power handling in a very small device. The fast scan rates and high power handling of the proposed EO deflector will be useful in for beam scanning in remote sensing applications. The deflector should be used to overcome existing limitations in free space communications and variable optical attenuators.