We supply liquid crystal based Fast Optical Shutter (FOS) devices from LC-Tec.
The FOS series is a range of polariser-based nematic liquid crystal optical shutters that control the light transmittance by an externally applied drive voltage. Compared to conventional mechanical shutters, LC shutters are completely vibration-free and contain no moving parts.
Other advantages that can be achieved when using LC-Tec's products are:
- Fast switching
- High contrast
- Low power consumption
- Large design freedom
- Miniaturised & Ruggedised
The shutter consists of a polarisation modulator in the form of a single or two LC cells positioned between crossed linear polarisers. Applying the drive voltage reorients the birefringent LC molecules, changing the phase retardation of light passing through the LC cell and the transmittance of light passing through the full shutter structure. Analogue gray-scale operation between fully open and closed states is achieved by voltage amplitude modulation. In order to meet a wide range of requirements in multiple applications, a series of standard FOS models possessing different electro-optical properties are offered in a number of standard sizes, all available with short lead times.
- FOS - GP shutter for visible wavelengths, wide-view & reduced closed state light leakage at oblique angles
- FOS(G2) - 2nd generation shutter similar to FOS with improved switching times
- FOS(G2)-CE - Dual-cell contrast enhanced (≥120,000:1) version of FOS(G2)
- X-FOS(G2) - Extra-fast 2nd generation FOS
- PolarSpeed© - Ultra-fast symmetrical switching FOS
- FOS-NIR - Broadband visible & NIR (up to 2000nm) FOS with hard coat film on outer surface
Most FOS models are supplied with an AR-coating on the outer surface of the polarisers but for demanding optical applications can also be supplied as -IQ (Image Quality) designs with an optical quality high-efficiency AR-coated cover glass laminated to both sides. This configuration minimizes surface reflection, beam deviation, and wavefront aberration.
The FOS, X-FOS(G2), and PolarSpeed®-S models can also be offered as polarisation modulators & rotators, enabling switching between two output polarization states, for example between linear-linear or left- and right-handed circular polarization.
In most cases the standard model offering described above is available in the 2" x 2" format without MOQ and with short lead times. The exception is the FOS(G2)/FOS(G2)-IQ where the size without MOQ is 50 x 30 mm².
Other sizes are available with 100 piece MOQ and custom sizes, shapes and array formats can also be developed with NRE and tooling charges quoted on a case-by-case basis.
LC-Tec also offer a standard controller. The LCC-230 is a flexible, full-featured liquid crystal controller. The LCC-230 incorporates two independent LC channels, each with 30Vrms of range and fully short-circuit protected. The controller is operated by the LCDriver2 application via a full-speed USB 2.0 compliant interface. LCDriver2 permits dynamic editing of programs up to 96 lines in length. Three trigger modes (internal, line, program) determine how program lines are executed. Up to nine programs may also be pre-stored on the LCC-230 for stand-alone operation.
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Fast Optical Shutter overview |
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FOS - Standard |
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X-FOS(G2) - Extra-Fast 2nd Generation |
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X-FOS(G2)-CE - Extra-Fast 2nd Generation Contrast Enhanced |
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PolarSpeed©-S - Ultra-Fast Symmetrical Switching |
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FOS-NIR(1100HT) - Visible & NIR (to 2000nm) |
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LCC-230 LC-FOS controller manual |
