Spatial light modulators

Claim 1

A smart spatial modulator device whose output comprises an optical beam modulated in accordance with optical and/or electronic input signals, the device including a pixel comprising: a chiral smectic liquid crystal material disposed between a semiconductor substrate carrying a first electrode and a panel carrying a second electrode; first electronic circuitry formed in the semiconductor substrate in the vicinity of the first electrode for changing the sate of the liquid crystal material; further electronic circuitry formed in the semiconductor substrate in the vicinity of the first electrode to provide pointwise operations at the pixel, said pointwise operations including logic function, amplification and thresholding; a photodetector outputs said optical input signal for addressing said pixel; said further electronic circuitry includes an electronic input circuitry which outputs said electronic input signal for addressing said pixel in addition to the addressing by said optical input signal or alternatively to the addressing by said optical input signal, said first and further electronic circuitry acting instantaneously to process said input optical and/or electronic signal or signals and to change the state of the liquid crystal material to modulate the output optical beam and/or to provide an electronic output in accordance with the processing carried out; the device further including a plurality of said pixels, said plurality of pixels being in combination with neighboring pixels to form an array, and each pixel of the plurality individually performs an identical logic function to the other pixels of the plurality, the array performs one of a plurality of different respective logic functions in dependence on the interconnection of said plurality of pixels.