Patent EP0051356A1 successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
EP0051356A1
Expired / Lapsed
EP
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Electro-optic devices
Assignee: Xerox Corp
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Filing: 1981-09-17
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Granted: —
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Expires: 2001-09-17
Abstract
Abstract One or more electrodes (18A-181) of an electro-optic device (12) are supported on a separate substrate (41) which is held in close contact with the electro-optic element (17) of the device (12) so that the electric fields that are created when voltages are applied to such electrodes are proximity coupled into the electro-optic element (17). Proximity coupling is especially advantageous for multi-gate light valves and the like where separate electrical connections have to be made to a multitude of electrodes because the electrode-supporting substrate (41) may be a large scale integrated circuit through which such connections are made. However, the broader aspects of proximity coupling are applicable to electro-optic devices in general, including bulk and TIR electro-optic modulators and straight through and TIR multi-gate electro-optic light valves.
Inventors
- 👤 William D. Turner
- 👤 Robert A. Sprague
- 👤 David H. Hartke
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
EP
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-11-01 10:01
CPC Classifications
G; G02; G02F; G02F1/00; G02F1/01; G02F1/03; G02F1/0305; G02F1/0316; G02F1/29; G02F1/31; G02F1/315
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 11
Claim 1
Independent Claim
100 words
An electro-optic device (12) including an electro-optic clement (17), a plurality of electrodes (18A-18I) intimately coupled to said electro-optic element (17), and means (25-27) coupled to said electrodes for applying voltages thereto so that electric fields (28) are created within said electro-optic element (17); said device (12) being characterized by having a substrate (41) for supporting at least one of said electrodes and means (44-45) engaged with said elcctro-optic clement (17) and with said substrate (41) for maintaining said substrate supported electrodes (18a-18b) closely adjacent said electro-optic element (17), thereby proximity coupling said fields (28) into said electro-optic element (17).
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
100 words
An electro-optic device (12) including an electro-optic clement (17), a plurality of electrodes (18A-18I) intimately coupled to said electro-optic element (17), and means (25-27) coupled to said electrodes for applying voltages thereto so that electric fields (28) are created within said electro-optic element (17); said device (12) being characterized by having a substrate (41) for supporting at least one of said electrodes and means (44-45) engaged with said elcctro-optic clement (17) and with said substrate (41) for maintaining said substrate supported electrodes (18a-18b) closely adjacent said electro-optic element (17), thereby proximity coupling said fields (28) into said electro-optic element (17).
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
160 words
The electro-optic device (12) of Claim 1 further characterized in that said electro-optic element (17) is optically transmissive and has a predetermined optical axis and a reflective surface (21) which is generally parallel to said optical axis, said electro-optic device further includes means for applying a sheet-like, collimated input light beam (24A) to said electro-optic element (17) at a grazing angle of incidence relative to said reflective surface (21), whereby said input beam is totally internally reflected from said reflective surface (21), and said electrodes (18A-18I). are all supported on said substrate (41) closely adjacent said reflective surface (21) and have projections of substantial length along said optical axis to create fringe fields (28) within an interaction region (29) of said electro-optic elcment (17), whereby said light beam interacts with said fringe fields (28) as it approaches toward and recedes from said reflective surface (21), thereby providing an output light beam (24B) which is modulated in accordance with said voltages.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
78 words
The electro-optic device (12) of Claim 2 further characterized in that said electro-optic element (17) is an electro-optic crystal having an optically polished input face (22) through which said input beam (24A) enters said crystal and an optically polished output face (23) through which said output beam (24B) leaves said crystal, and said reflective surface (21) is another optically polished face of said crystal (17) which is disposed between said input face (22) and said output face (23).
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
131 words
The electro-optic device (12) of Claim 2 or 3 further characterized in that said electrodes are spaced apart orthogonally relative to the optical axis of said electro-optic element (17) and width wise of said input beam (24a), at least cvcry other one of said electrodes is independently addressable, said means (25-27) for applying voltages to said electrodes includes means . (27) for cyclically applying respective data samples to said independently addressable electrodes, the data samples applied during any one of said cycles representing picture elements for a respective line of an image, and the data samples applied during successive cycles representing picture elements for successive lines of said image, whereby said fringe fields sequentially spatially modulatc said light beam in accordance with the picture elements for successive lines of said image.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
58 words
The electro-optic device (12) of any one of Claims 2 to 4 further characterized in that said substrate (41) is an integrated circuit containing electronics (42B-42G) for driving said electrodes (18A-18I). said integrated circuit (41) includes an electrically conductive outer layer (40) electrical connections to said electronics, and said conductive layer (40) is patterned to define said electrodes.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
78 words
The electro-optic device (12) of any one of Claims 2 to 5 further characterized in that said substrate (41) is flexible, and said electro-optic device (12) additionally includes a rigid base plate (52), and resilient means (51) compressed between said substrate (41) and said base plate (52) for applying a distributed bias to said substrate (41). said bias urging said substrate (41) toward said reflective surface (21), thereby causing said electrodes to generally conform to said surface (21).
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
27 words
The electro-optic device (12) of Claim 6 further characterized in that said resilient means (51) is an clastomcric pressure pad, whereby said bias is generally uniformly distributed.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
43 words
The electro-optic device (12) of Claim 7 further characterized in that said pressure pad (51) is electrically conductive and is in electrical contact with said substrate (41), whereby a ground return path for said substrate (41) is completed through said pressure pad (51).
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
72 words
The clectro-optic device (12) of any one of Claims 2 to 5 further characterized by having spacer means (61-62) disposed between said substrate (41) and said electro-optic clement (17) for mechanically spacing said electrodes from said clectro-optic element (17) by a predetermined nominal gap distance, said spacer means (61-62) engaging said electro-optic clement (17) outside said interaction region (29). whereby said interaction region (29) is substantially free of any differential contact pressures.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
83 words
The electro-optic device (12) of any one of Claims 1 to 9 further characterized by having a dielectric (64) disposed between said electro-optic element (17) and said substrate (41), said dielectric (64) substantially filling any gap (63) between said electro-optic element (17) and said substrate (41) and having a relative dielectric constant which is substantially greater than 1, thereby reducing the effective electrical thickness of said gap (63) and the effect of any gap irregularities on the uniformity of said fields (28) .
References Cited (Backward Citations)
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