This PDF file contains the front matter associated with SPIE Proceedings Volume 9761, including the Title Page, Copyright information, Table of Contents, Introduction (if any), and Conference Committee listing.

The essential goal for fast prototyping of microstructures is to reduce the cycle time. Conventional methods up to now consist of creating designs with a CAD software, then fabricating or purchasing a Photomask and finally using a mask aligner to transfer the pattern to the photoresist. The new Maskless Aligner (MLA) enables to expose the pattern directly without fabricating a mask, which results in a significantly shorter prototyping cycle. To achieve this short prototyping cycle, the MLA has been improved in many aspects compared to other direct write lithography solutions: exposure speed, user interface, ease of operation and flexibility.

There is a need for a space-suitable solution to the selection of targets to be observed in astronomical multiobject spectrometers (MOS). A few digital micromirror device (DMD) - based prototype MOS have been developed for use at ground observatories, However their main use will come in deploying a space based mission. The question of DMD performance under in-orbit radiation remains unanswered. DMDs were tested under accelerated heavy-ion radiation (with the control electronics shielded from radiation), with a focus on detection of single-event effects (SEEs) including latch-up events. Testing showed that DMDs are sensitive to non-destructive ion-induced state changes; however, all SEEs were cleared with a soft reset (that is, sending a new pattern to the device). The DMDs did not experience single-event induced permanent damage or functional changes that required a hard reset (power cycle), even at high ion fluences. This suggests that the SSE rate burden will be manageable for a DMD-based instrument when exposed to solar particle fluxes and cosmic rays on orbit.

Near infrared (NIR) dynamic scene projection systems are used to perform hardware in-the-loop (HWIL) testing of a unit under test operating in the NIR band. The common and complex requirement of a class of these units is a dynamic scene that is spatio-temporal variant. In this paper we apply and investigate active external modulation of NIR laser in different ranges of temporal frequencies. We use digital micromirror devices (DMDs) integrated as the core of a NIR projection system to generate these dynamic scenes. We deploy the spatial pattern to the DMD controller to simultaneously yield the required amplitude by pulse width modulation (PWM) of the mirror elements as well as the spatio-temporal pattern. Desired modulation and coding of high stable, high power visible (Red laser at 640 nm) and NIR (Diode laser at 976 nm) using the combination of different optical masks based on DMD were achieved. These spatial versatile active coding strategies for both low and high frequencies in the range of kHz for irradiance of different targets were generated by our system and recorded using VIS-NIR fast cameras. The temporally-modulated laser pulse traces were measured using array of fast response photodetectors. Finally using a high resolution spectrometer, we evaluated the NIR dynamic scene projection system response in terms of preserving the wavelength and band spread of the NIR source after projection.

The DLP NIRscan Nano is an ultra-portable spectrometer evaluation module utilizing DLP technology to meet lower cost, smaller size, and higher performance than traditional architectures. The replacement of a linear array detector with DLP digital micromirror device (DMD) in conjunction with a single point detector adds the functionality of programmable spectral filters and sampling techniques that were not previously available on NIR spectrometers. This paper presents the hardware, software, and optical systems of the DLP NIRscan Nano and its design considerations on the implementation of a DLP-based spectrometer.

Programmable spectral filters based on digital micromirror devices (DMDs) are typically restricted to imaging a 1D line across a scene, analogous to conventional "push-broom scanning" hyperspectral imagers. In previous work, however, we demonstrated that, by placing the diffraction grating at a telecentric image plane rather than at the more conventional location in collimated space, a spectral plane can be created at which light from the entire 2D scene focuses to a unique location for each wavelength. A DMD placed at this spectral plane can then spectrally manipulate an entire 2D image at once, enabling programmable matched filters to be applied to real-time video imaging. We have adapted this concept to imaging rapidly evolving gas plumes. We have constructed a high spectral resolution programmable spectral imager operating in the shortwave infrared region, capable of resolving the rotational-vibrational line structure of several gases at sub-nm spectral resolution. This ability to resolve the detailed gas-phase line structure enables implementation of highly selective filters that unambiguously separate the gas spectrum from background spectral clutter. On-line and between-line multi-band spectral filters, with bands individually weighted using the DMD's duty-cycle-based grayscale capability, are alternately uploaded to the DMD, the resulting images differenced, and the result displayed in real time at rates of several frames per second to produce real-time video of the turbulent motion of the gas plume.

Spectroscopic measurements have the potential to positively impact a wide range of research, development, monitoring and control applications. In many cases, this potential is not realized because the spectrometer cannot be brought out of the laboratory to the measurement site due to sensitivities to environmental factors, highly accurate data cannot be obtained in a timely manner, or customizing the spectrometer to a specific application is costly and precludes re-use of the device for other application once its original purpose is served. We present the development of a DLP-based spectroscopic system in the near-infrared that is low-cost, compact and rugged, provides high resolution and is highly adaptable through straightforward software control. The key elements of the design include an efficient and compact optical pathway, a high-resolution DMD controlled by a fast DLP board, and a user-friendly, feature-rich software package that facilitates system configuration and data analysis. The DMD replaces the detector array in traditional spectrometers, and is shown to provide greater functionality while eliminating the need for mechanical scanning. We demonstrate how the long, thin columns of mirrors in the DMD provide high wavelength selectivity and capture more light at each wavelength, increasing measurement SNR. Selectively activating columns of mirrors is shown to adaptively tailor the resolution and the wavelengths collected and analyzed by the system allow one device to meet the needs of many different applications and to reduce measurement times. The software interface developed for accessing the many features of the spectrometer is discussed.

Many DMD-based programmable light sources consist of a white light source and a pair of spectrometers operating in subtractive mode. A DMD between the two spectrometers shapes the delivered spectrum. Since both spectrometers must (1) fit within a small volume, and (2) provide significant spectral resolution, a narrow intermediary slit is required. Another approach is to use a spectrometer designed around a High Throughput Virtual Slit, which enables higher spectral resolution than is achievable with conventional spectroscopy by manipulating the beam profile in pupil space. Conventional imaging spectrograph designs image the entrance slit onto the exit focal plane after dispersing the spectrum. Most often, near 1:1 imaging optics are used in order to optimize both entrance aperture and spectral resolution. This approach limits the spectral resolution to the product of the dispersion and the slit width. Achieving high spectral resolution in a compact instrument necessarily requires a narrow entrance slit, which limits instrumental throughput (étendue). By reshaping the pupil with reflective optics, HTVS-equipped instruments create a tall, narrow image profile at the exit focal plane without altering the NA, typically delivering 5X or better spectral resolution than is achievable with a conventional design. This approach works equally well in DMD-based programmable light sources as in single stage spectrometers. Assuming a 5X improvement in étendue, a 500 W source can be replaced by a 100 W equivalent, creating a cooler, more efficient tunable light source with equal power density over the desired bandwidth without compromising output power.

Introduction of adaptive components into optical sensing architectures can facilitate powerful new modes of operation that blend acquisition and exploitation. I discuss three spectral applications where such gains have been validated experimentally by my research group-dynamic range matching, direct classification spectrometry, and direct classification spectral imaging and describe a key challenge to further development of these kinds of approaches.

We present the design of a multi-spectral imager built using the architecture of the single-pixel camera. The architecture is enabled by the novel sampling theory of compressive sensing implemented optically using the Texas Instruments DLP™ micro-mirror array. The array not only implements spatial modulation necessary for compressive imaging but also provides unique diffractive spectral features that result in a multi-spectral, high-spatial resolution imager design. The new camera design provides multi-spectral imagery in a wavelength range that extends from the visible to the shortwave infrared without reduction in spatial resolution. In addition to the compressive imaging spectrometer design, we present a diffractive model of the architecture that allows us to predict a variety of detailed functional spatial and spectral design features. We present modeling results, architectural design and experimental results that prove the concept.

We have developed a compressive hyperspectral imaging system that is based on single-pixel camera architecture. We have incorporated the developed system in a scanning white-light interferometer (SWLI) and showed that replacing SWLI’s CCD-based camera by the compressive hyperspectral imaging system, we have access to high-resolution multispectral images of interferometer’s fringes. Using these multi-spectral images, the system is capable of simultaneous spectroscopy of the surface, which can be used, for example, to eliminate the effect of surface contamination and providing new spectral information for fringe signal analysis which could be used to reduce the need for vertical scan, therefore making height measurement more tolerant to object’s position.

We applied compressed ultrafast photography (CUP), a computational imaging technique, to acquire three-dimensional (3D) images. The approach unites image encryption, compression, and acquisition in a single measurement, thereby allowing efficient and secure data transmission. By leveraging the time-of-flight (ToF) information of pulsed light reflected by the object, we can reconstruct a volumetric image (150 mm×150 mm×1050 mm, x × y × z) from a single camera snapshot. Furthermore, we demonstrated high-speed 3D videography of a moving object at 75 frames per second using the ToF-CUP camera.

In this paper two concepts of computational imaging applicable for infrared and THz systems are discussed and demonstrated. In the first a controllable array of DMD is used in the aperture plane in order to enhance the field of view of a near infra-red imager. In the second a time varying array of pinholes realizes an improved lensless imaging scheme.

The Compressive Line Sensing (CLS) active imaging system has been demonstrated to be effective in scattering mediums, such as coastal turbid water, fog and mist, through simulations and test tank experiments. The CLS prototype hardware consists of a CW laser, a DMD, a photomultiplier tube, and a data acquisition instrument. CLS employs whiskbroom imaging formation that is compatible with traditional survey platforms. The sensing model adopts the distributed compressive sensing theoretical framework that exploits both intra-signal sparsity and highly correlated nature of adjacent areas in a natural scene. During sensing operation, the laser illuminates the spatial light modulator DMD to generate a series of 1D binary sensing pattern from a codebook to “encode” current target line segment. A single element detector PMT acquires target reflections as encoder output. The target can then be recovered using the encoder output and a predicted on-target codebook that reflects the environmental interference of original codebook entries. In this work, we investigated the effectiveness of the CLS imaging system in a turbulence environment. Turbulence poses challenges in many atmospheric and underwater surveillance applications. A series of experiments were conducted in the Naval Research Lab’s optical turbulence test facility with the imaging path subjected to various turbulence intensities. The total-variation minimization sparsifying basis was used in imaging reconstruction. The preliminary experimental results showed that the current imaging system was able to recover target information under various turbulence strengths. The challenges of acquiring data through strong turbulence environment and future enhancements of the system will be discussed.

We generated a fully complex hologram by utilizing a combination of amplitude and phase spatial light modulators. A digital micromirror device (DMD) was used to produce the amplitude profile, and a liquid crystal spatial light modulator (SLM) produced the phase profile. A band-limited 4-f imaging system imaged the DMD onto the SLM to create a fully complex modulated wavefront, which reconstructed a holographic image at the desired location. We utilized backwards diffraction calculations, error-diffusion, and amplitude beam-shaping to design a hologram with small reconstruction error.

Active Thermography is a well-established non-destructive testing method and used to detect cracks, voids or material inhomogeneities. It is based on applying thermal energy to a samples’ surface whereas inner defects alter the nonstationary heat flow. Conventional excitation of a sample is hereby done spatially, either planar (e.g. using a lamp) or local (e.g. using a focused laser) and temporally, either pulsed or periodical. In this work we combine a high power laser with a Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) allowing us to merge all degrees of freedom to a spatially and temporally controlled heat source. This enables us to exploit the possibilities of coherent thermal wave shaping. Exciting periodically while controlling at the same time phase and amplitude of the illumination source induces – via absorption at the sample’s surface - a defined thermal wave propagation through a sample. That means thermal waves can be controlled almost like acoustical or optical waves. However, in contrast to optical or acoustical waves, thermal waves are highly damped due to the diffusive character of the thermal heat flow and therefore limited in penetration depth in relation to the achievable resolution. Nevertheless, the coherence length of thermal waves can be chosen in the mmrange for modulation frequencies below 10 Hz which is perfectly met by DMD technology. This approach gives us the opportunity to transfer known technologies from wave shaping techniques to thermography methods. We will present experiments on spatial and temporal wave shaping, demonstrating interference based crack detection.

The micromechanical digital micromirror device (DMD) performs as a spatial light modulator to shape the light wavefront. Different from the liquid crystal devices, which use the birefringence to modulate the light wave, the DMD regulates the wavefront through an amplitude modulation with the digitally controlled mirrors switched on and off. The advantages of such device are the fast speed, polarization insensitivity, and the broadband modulation ability. The fast switching ability for the DMD not only enables the shaping of static light mode, but also could dynamically compensate for the wavefront distortion due to scattering medium. We have employed such device to create the higher order modes, including the Laguerre-Gaussian, Hermite-Gaussian, as well as Mathieu modes. There exists another kind of beam with shape-preservation against propagation, and self-healing against obstacles. Representative modes are the Bessel modes, Airy modes, and the Pearcey modes. Since the DMD modulates the light intensity, a series of algorithms are developed to calculate proper amplitude hologram for shaping the light. The quasi-continuous gray scale images could imitate the continuous amplitude hologram, while the binary amplitude modulation is another means to create the modulation pattern for a steady light field. We demonstrate the generation of the non-diffracting beams with the binary amplitude modulation via the DMD, and successfully created the non-diffracting Bessel beam, Airy beam, and the Pearcey beam. We have characterized the non-diffracting modes through propagation measurements as well as the self-healing measurements.

Airy beam is a kind of wavepacket existing in the form of photons, electrons, and plasmonics. Well known as diffraction-free beam, optical Airy beam tends to accelerate in transverse space with a parabolic trajectory, and exhibits self-healing property when partially blocked. Those properties have attracted a great deal of research interests and applications. Circular Airy beam, exhibiting cylindrically symmetric intensity pattern and abruptly autofocusing characteristics in the linear media, is a variant of Airy-like wave. Optical vortex, on the other hand, is a kind of phase singularity. We present to shape the autofocusing Airy beam with a vortex phase structure, which was realized through the binary amplitude modulation with a digital micromirror device (DMD). Each mirror on the DMD could be electronically addressed to situate at either of the two solid positional states corresponding to on and off. Shaping the light into a specific mode requires the calculation of the amplitude pattern for display on the DMD. By reshaping individual DMD pixels into giant pixels, the complex field of the vortex Airy beam could be encoded with a super-pixel method. The propagation property of the vortex Airy beam was investigated through numerical simulation for different topological charges. Furthermore, the propagation characteristics of this beam in free space were verified and discussed through the experiments. We anticipate that the proposed vortex Airy beam in particle trapping, biological field and optical communications. This method with DMD can also be used to generate other beams with different characteristics.