Abstract: Snapshot imaging spectrometer systems, including snapshot hyperspectral imaging and snapshot spectral domain coherence tomography systems, with a large numbers of spectral channels and spatial pixels are desirable for applications ranging from detection of pollution and chemicals, environmental studies, surveillance, resources management, astronomy, biomedical and military use. Methods for achieving such high spatial and spectral resolutions and systems based upon these methods are disclosed. Significant increase in number of spectral channels, as compared to prior art systems, is possible with spread of spectral signature of pixels in oblique direction that allows longer than several times row (or column) spacing of a single wavelength pixel array at the final image. Methods and embodiments are disclosed that would advance the capabilities of prior art snapshot imaging spectrometer systems.

Abstract: A high-speed high-isolation fiber-optic matrix switch using only one acousto-optic device with phased array transducers is disclosed. Previously disclosed fiber-optic switches either required spatially separated more than one acousto-optic devices making them complex, hard to align and expensive or could not achieve high-isolation and low-insertion loss performance. A simple structure of 2×2 fiber-optic matrix switch with one phased array transducer as disclosed here is expected to make acousto-optic based fiber-optic switches more attractive than similar MEMs based switches. Use of shared lens instead of individual lenses at the input and output fiber array is expected to further reduce complexity and cost of the acousto-optic based fiber-optic switches.

Abstract: Acousto-optic(AO) devices having a sectioned optical transducer with a side passing optical beam forming an acousto-optic interaction plane, an electrode pattern on the transducer, and oblique demarcation cuts in the electrode pattern which are not normal to the acousto-optic interaction plane. The oblique cuts are at an angle oriented between 5 to 85 degrees, preferably approximately 45 degrees, with respect to the normal to the acousto-optic interaction plane. The oblique demarcation cuts eliminate side-lobes and ghost images in an acoustic field generated by the transducer. The electrode pattern shapes can be diamond, a truncated Gaussian, cosine, square, rectangular, circular, and elliptical. Acousto-Optic Modulators (AOMs). The types of AO devices include: Acousto-Optic Beam Deflectors (AOBDs), Bragg Cells (BCs), Acousto-Optic Tunable Filters (AOTFs), Acousto-Optic Frequency Shifters (AOFSs), and Acoust-Optic Correlators (AOCs).