Angular Spatial Light Modulator (ASLM)

This invention is an Angular Spatial Light Modulator (ASLM) using a novel arrangement of illumination and digital micromirror devices (DMDs). The invention can simultaneously modulate spatial and angular content of light with a potential total bandwidth of 1Tera pixel-angle per second (1G in space and 1K in angle).

Background:
Optical systems control light spatially (the distribution of light on a single plane) and angularly (the propagation of light between planes). The current means of controlling light through the angular domain is limited because it relies on a motorized scanning mirror with a data rate 1,000 times smaller than a spatial light modulator. Therefore, a solution is needed to modulate both the angular and spatial domain without creating a bottleneck.

Applications:

• LIDAR
• Virtual reality or augmented reality displays
• Projectors

Advantages:

• Much higher angular and spatial modulation rates
• Less expensive than mechanical scanners
• More compact than mechanical scanners
• More rugged and less vulnerable to failure

Status: issued U.S. patent #11,223,805