Search Results (13)

In the present work, we consider an optical design of a slitless spectrograph for an existing 0.5 m-class telescope. This design concept has a number of advantages such as compact size, simplicity, and simultaneous coverage of a large field of view. A challenge with this design is correcting aberrations caused by placing a dispersing element in a converging beam. To overcome this issue, we propose to use a composite grism, which represents a combination of a prism and a volume-phase holographic grating, the latter which is split into zones with independently optimized parameters. We demonstrate two designs of such a grism. In both designs, the spectrograph operates in the range of 450–950 nm in an $F/6.8$ beam and covers a field of view of 35.6${}^{\prime }$ × 7.2${}^{\prime }$. Through advanced modeling, it is shown that a composite grism having four rectangular zones with different thickness and index modulation depth of the hologram and recorded with an auxiliary deformable mirror decreases the astigmatic elongation by a factor of 85, increases the spectral resolving power by 4.4 times, and reaches $R1389$ while increasing the average diffraction efficiency by a factor of $1.31$. If we reduce the number of zones to only two, replace the deformable mirror with two static corrector plates, and fix the hologram thickness, the corresponding performance gains still remain high: the astigmatism is reduced by a factor of 61, the spectral resolving power is up to $1.7$ times higher, reaching $R1067$, and the efficiency is increased by a factor of $1.27$. This shows that the proposed design allows the construction of a simple and compact instrument, providing high performance over the entire field of view and spectral range. Full article

We report on the optical characterization of very high-efficiency and high-resolution holographic volume phase transmission gratings. The gratings are recorded in a new photo-polymerizable mixture made by epoxy-resin and multi-acrylate. The epoxy-resin used is known to make tenacious acrylate-based films. The holographic mixture contains two photo-initiators, the synergic effect of which enables a reliable photo-polymerization process in the visible region of the electromagnetic spectrum. The recorded holograms are mechanically stable, show long-term temporal stability and very high values of diffraction efficiency, coupled with good angular selectivity due to a relatively narrow band of wavelengths. We measured the intensity of the transmitted beam and calculated the intensity of the diffracted beam at different wavelengths, deriving the refractive index modulation and the grating pitch by fitting the experimental data with a slightly modified theoretical approach. These kind of mixtures can be used in several fields of application, such as chemical or bio-sensors, high resolution optical sensors, high-density optical data storage, encryption and security. Full article

The formation of volume holograms in photosensitive polymers is a complex process under the influence of many interacting factors: material composition and processing, exposure conditions, and pre-exposure affect the development and final characteristics of holographic gratings. In order to better understand the interplay of these influencing factors, the detailed investigations of holographic recording in a new organic material are performed and the results are presented here. The material response and performance of an epoxy-based free surface material designed for volume holography are investigated. For this purpose, time-resolved investigation of volume holographic grating growth is performed on the one hand. Spatially resolved analysis of volume holographic phase gratings by point-by-point scanning of the local material response to the Gaussian intensity distribution of the recording beams is carried out on the other hand. Thus, the influence of pre-exposure on the temporal grating formation, as well as on the final obtained refractive index contrast, was determined. The various effects observed can be explained by the consumption of photosensitive compounds and prior crosslinking in the course of pre-exposure. Rather unexpected effects are that, on the one hand, pre-exposed gratings emerge with ever more complete null diffraction at the transition point and, on the other hand, a stabilizing effect of some degree of pre-exposure on regions exposed with low intensity was identified. Full article

Single-beam multiple-intensity iterative phase retrieval is a high-precision and lens-free computational imaging method, which reconstructs the complex-valued distribution of the object from a volume of axially captured diffraction intensities using the post-processing algorithm. However, for the object with slowly-varying waves, the method may encounter the problem of convergence stagnation since the lack of diversity between the captured intensity patterns. In this paper, a novel technique to enhance phase retrieval using holographic illumination is proposed. One special computer-generated hologram is designed, which can generate multiple significantly different images at the required distances. The incident plane wave is firstly modulated by the hologram, and then the exit wave is used to illuminate the object. Benefitting from this holographic illumination, remarkable intensity changes in the given detector planes can be produced, which is conducive to fast and high-accuracy reconstruction. Simulation and optical experiments are performed to verify the feasibility of the proposed method. Full article

Blue phase (BP) liquid crystals, which self-assemble into soft three-dimensional (3D) photonic crystals, have attracted enormous research interest due to their ability to control light and potential photonic applications. BPs have long been known as optically isotropic materials, but recent works have revealed that achieving on-demand 3D orientation of BP crystals is necessary to obtain improved electro-optical performance and tailored optical characteristics. Various approaches have been proposed to precisely manipulate the crystal orientation of BPs on a substrate, through the assistance of external stimuli and directing self-assembly processes. Here, we discuss the various orientation-controlling technologies of BP crystals, with their mechanisms, advantages, drawbacks, and promising applications. This review first focuses on technologies to achieve the uniform crystal plane orientation of BPs on a substrate. Further, we review a strategy to control the azimuthal orientation of BPs along predesigned directions with a uniform crystal plane, allowing the 3D orientation to be uniquely defined on a substrate. The potential applications such as volume holograms are also discussed with their operation principle. This review provides significant advances in 3D photonic crystals and gives a huge potential for intelligent photonic devices with tailored optical characteristics. Full article

The development of environmentally robust photosensitive materials for holographic recording is crucial for applications such as outdoor LED light redirection, holographic displays and holographic sensors. Despite the progress in holographic recording materials development, their sensitivity to humidity remains a challenge and protection from the environment is required. One approach to solving this challenge is to select substrate such as cellulose acetate, which is water resistant. This work reports the development of a cellulose-based photopolymer with sensitivity of 3.5 cm²/mJ and refractive index modulation of 2.5 × 10⁻³ achieved in the transmission mode of recording. The suitability for holographic recording was demonstrated by recording gratings with the spatial frequency of 800 linepairs/mm. The intensity dependence of the diffraction efficiency of gratings recorded in 70 μm thick layers was studied and it was observed that the optimum recording intensity was 10 mW/cm². The robustness of the structures was studied after immersing the layer in water for one hour. It was observed that the diffraction efficiency and the surface characteristics measured before and after exposure to water remain unchanged. Finally, the surface hardness was characterized and was shown to be comparable to that of glass and significantly higher than the one of PVA-based acrylamide photopolymer. Full article

A new double-layer sunlight concentration system, where each layer is divided into two regions, is proposed, and the system has four volume holograms. Since the four holograms convert light in different directions, the interlayer crosstalk is reduced, and the system has a high concentration ratio. The simulation results show that the concentration system can achieve a 30° operation angle range. The holograms are fabricated on photopolymer substrates, and the left half of the system is implemented using two holograms. The characteristics of the left half of the system are assessed. The agreement of the simulation and experimental results on diffraction efficiency validates the proposed method. The tested monochromatic concentration ratio can achieve a record of 418.8, and the concentration ratio under sunlight is 5.38. The experiment results of light use efficiency are close to the simulation with non-crosstalk, which indicates that the interlayer crosstalk is small. Full article

Holographic volume phase gratings are recorded in an epoxy-based, free-surface, volume holographic recording material. Light-induced gratings are formed by photo-triggered mass migration caused by component diffusion. The material resolution enables a wide range of pattern spacings, to record both transmission and reflection holograms with many different spatial frequencies. An optimum spatial frequency response is found between the low spatial frequency roll-off and the high spatial frequency cut-off. The influence of the energy density of exposure on the spatial frequency response is investigated. Secondary volume holographic gratings (parasitic gratings) are observed in the high frequency range. The possibility of distinguishing the regular grating from the secondary grating is discussed in the form of probe wavelength detuning. Full article

Holographic recording media can store the amplitude and the phase, or the complex amplitude, of a beam on the basis of holography. Owing to this characteristic, digital data can be encoded onto the complex amplitude of a signal beam in holographic data storage. However, most of conventional holographic storage systems encode digital data onto the amplitude alone because there are difficulties for modulating and detecting the phase. To solve the difficulties, a holographic storage system using digital holographic techniques has been proposed. With the help of digital holographic techniques, it is possible to modulate and detect the complex amplitude of a signal beam. Moreover, the proposed system can modulate the complex amplitude of a reference beam. In this paper, by making use of the capability, a correlation-based multiplexing with uncorrelated reference beams is demonstrated in the proposed system. Multiple holograms can be recorded in the same volume of a recording medium with no need for mechanical movements. Experimental results show that the proposed system with a correlation-based multiplexing can improve the storage capacity and can utilize the full potential of a recording medium without crosstalk noise stem from the optical setup. Full article

In order to further understand the mechanism of volume hologram formation in photosensitive polymers, light-induced material response is analyzed in commonly used epoxy-based negative photoresist Epon SU-8. For this purpose, time-resolved investigation of volume holographic grating growth is performed in the SU-8 based host–guest system and in the pure SU-8 material, respectively. The comparison of grating growth curves from doped and undoped system allows us to draw conclusions on the impact of individual components on the grating formation process. The successive formation of transient absorption as well as phase gratings in SU-8 is observed. Influence of exposure duration and UV flood cure on the grating growth are investigated. Observed volume holographic grating formation in SU-8 can be explained based on the generation and subsequent diffusion of photoacid as well as time-delayed polymerization of exposed and unexposed areas. Full article

Volume phase gratings, recorded in a photosensitive polymer by two-beam interference exposure, are studied by means of optical microscopy. Transmission gratings and reflection gratings, with periods in the order of 10 μm down to 130 nm, were investigated. Mapping of holograms by means of imaging in sectional view is introduced to study reflection-type gratings, evading the resolution limit of classical optical microscopy. In addition, this technique is applied to examine so-called parasitic gratings, arising from interference from the incident reference beam and the reflected signal beam. The appearance and possible avoidance of such unintentionally recorded secondary structures is discussed. Full article

Random phase encoding is a unique technique for volume hologram which can be applied to various applications such as holographic multiplexing storage, image encryption, and optical sensing. In this review article, we first review and discuss diffraction selectivity of random phase encoding in volume holograms, which is the most important parameter related to multiplexing capacity of volume holographic storage. We then review an image encryption system based on random phase encoding. The alignment of phase key for decryption of the encoded image stored in holographic memory is analyzed and discussed. In the latter part of the review, an all-optical sensing system implemented by random phase encoding and holographic interconnection is presented. Full article

There is no doubt that the concept of volume holography has led to an incredibly great amount of scientific research and technological applications. One of these applications is the use of volume holograms as optical memories, and in particular, the use of a photosensitive medium like a photopolymeric material to record information in all its volume. In this work we analyze the applicability of Kogelnik’s Coupled Wave theory to the study of volume holograms recorded in photopolymers. Some of the theoretical models in the literature describing the mechanism of hologram formation in photopolymer materials use Kogelnik’s theory to analyze the gratings recorded in photopolymeric materials. If Kogelnik’s theory cannot be applied is necessary to use a more general Coupled Wave theory (CW) or the Rigorous Coupled Wave theory (RCW). The RCW does not incorporate any approximation and thus, since it is rigorous, permits judging the accurateness of the approximations included in Kogelnik’s and CW theories. In this article, a comparison between the predictions of the three theories for phase transmission diffraction gratings is carried out. We have demonstrated the agreement in the prediction of CW and RCW and the validity of Kogelnik’s theory only for gratings with spatial frequencies higher than 500 lines/mm for the usual values of the refractive index modulations obtained in photopolymers. Full article