Liquid crystal based non-mechanical beam tracking technology

The simulation and experimental testing of a non-mechanical beam tracking technology was investigated, in which a liquid crystal spatial light modulator (LCSLM) was used as a beam steering control device. The LCSLM was capable of steering the beam from −2.8947 to 2.8947° with a resolution of approximately 0.0226°. The LCSLM-based tracking system was simulated by MATLAB, and the Bode diagram indicated that the tracking performance was better than −17 dB when the disturbance frequency was 1 Hz. The tracking experiment was also executed to test the actual performance. The experimental data revealed that the tracking error (1σ) ranged from 0.024θmax to 0.225θmax when the disturbance frequency ranged from 0.2 to 2.0 Hz with an amplitude of θmax=2.4873°. Simulation and experimental testing demonstrated the feasibility of the non-mechanical beam tracking technology that employs liquid crystals.