title: Optical switch based on variable aperture.
abstract: We report on a pixel whose aperture can be varied electrically. The pixel is confined by a hole-patterned polymer wall and a dielectric liquid forms a ring shape around the wall surface. Without an electric field, the pixel has the largest aperture. The applied fringing field stretches the liquid surface, leading to a decrease in the aperture size. The switchable aperture ratio of the pixel is over 80% and the response time is ~10 ms. Such a device is useful for an optical attenuator, a light shutter, an adaptive iris, and an information display.
authors.affiliation: Department of Polymer-Nano Science and Technology, Chonbuk National University, Jeonju, Chonbuk, South Korea. hongwen@jbnu.ac.kr
authors.forename: Hongwen
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Ren
authors.forename: Su
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Xu
authors.forename: Shin-Tson
authors.initials: ST
authors.lastname: Wu