Modulation characteristics of optically controllable transparencies based on a photoconductor-liquid-crystal structure

The main characteristics of optically controllable transparencies based on a glassy-chalcogenide-semiconductor-nematic-liquid-crystal structure have been studied by holographic methods. These characteristics include the dependence of the diffraction efficiency on the intensity of the recording radiation and on the spatial frequency, and the response rate. A model is proposed that describes the dependence of the diffraction efficiency on the intensity of the recording radiation. The results indicate that the transparencies developed and studied here can be used both as a holographic device for the efficient recording of Fourier filters and as an input device in various coherent-optical information-processing systems. (C) 2000 The Optical Society of America. [S1070-9762(00)00208-6].