Holographic amplification of the diffraction angle from optical phase array for optical beam steering.

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Lidar Technology
• Holography

Background:

• Current non-mechanical lidar beam-steering technologies offer low energy cost and rapid refresh rates but suffer from a narrow angular range.
• Achieving a wide field of view is critical for advanced lidar applications, including autonomous systems and environmental monitoring.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present a novel method for increasing the diffraction angle in lidar beam-steering devices.
• To achieve near-spherical (4π steradians) angular coverage with low energy consumption and high refresh rates.

Main Methods:

• Utilized multiplexing to record multiple holograms within a single volume hologram, enabling 2π steradian diffraction.
• Integrated a hemispheric lens with the volume hologram and added secondary holographic optical elements to achieve 4π steradian coverage.
• Demonstrated beam collimation across multiple diffraction angles in an early prototype.

Main Results:

• The developed system achieved a diffraction angle coverage of approximately 90% of the entire sphere.
• An early prototype demonstrated five distinct diffraction angles, ranging from 20° to 150°.
• Beam collimation was successfully maintained across the tested angular range.

Conclusions:

• The presented holographic beam-steering method effectively expands the field of view for lidar applications.
• This approach overcomes the angular limitations of existing non-mechanical beam-steering technologies.
• The technique holds potential for enhancing lidar performance in various fields requiring wide-angle scanning.