Uniform and efficient beam shaping for high-energy lasers

Abstract

Phase-only beam shaping with liquid crystal on silicon spatial light modulators (SLM) allows modulating the wavefront dynamically and generating arbitrary intensity patterns with high efficiency. Since this method cannot take control of all degrees of freedom, a speckle pattern appears and drastically impairs the outcome. There are several methods to overcome this issue including algorithms which directly control phase and amplitude, but they suffer from low efficiency. Methods using two SLMs yield excellent results but they are usually limited in the applicable energy due to damage to the SLM’s backplane. We present a method which makes use of two SLMs and simultaneously gives way for high-energy laser applications. The algorithm and setup are designed to keep the fluence on the SLMs low by distributing the light over a large area. This provides stability against misalignment and facilitates experimental feasibility while keeping high efficiency.