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Versatile electrooptic light switch

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Abstract

In this paper we describe a novel type of interfere-ometric light switch which needs only low operating voltages that can be handled with semiconductor circuitry and has many possible intracavity and extracavity applications as modulator, beam deflector, Q-switch, mode locker, and cavity dump and allows hitherto unknown types of laser configuration. The basic principle of operation can be explained by Fig. 1(a), which depicts a Mach-Zehnder interferometer with two beam splitters B1 and B2 and two mirrors M1 and M2. A light beam entering, say, port A is equipartitioned by B1 into the partial beams 1 and 1'. Both partial beams are redirected by M1 and M2 and recombine on B2. On their way they pass the electrooptic elements EO1 and EO2, respectively. Depending on the path difference that the two partial beams experience before recombining on B2, light energy is distributed between the two exit ports C and D. With the correct voltages applied to one or both electrooptic elements, one can always reach a state where all the light leaves through either exit port C or D. The same reasoning applies also for light entering through port B. This means that we have a light switch analogous to the electrical switch shown in Fig. 1(b) with two states: (1) A connected to Dand B connected to C; (2) A connected to C and B connected to D.

© 1985 Optical Society of America

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