Fast-response liquid crystal variable optical retarder and multilevel attenuator

Abstract

We propose and demonstrate a fast-response liquid crystal (LC) variable optical retarder or attenuator with several transmission levels. The fast-response LC optical device consists of dual π -cells. The device is designed so that the transition between any two states is controlled by the application of an increased voltage level rather than by applying a lower level. This design offers transition times in the range of tens of microseconds between any transmission states. A limitation of the device is that the time between transitions cannot be arbitrarily short and is typically milliseconds.