Abstract

We present a polymeric optical phase retarder that is electrically tunable by a dielectric elastomer actuator. The soft material device affords a large tuning range ($14\pi$ at $\lambda =488\mathrm{nm}$) combined with high accuracy in optical path length and low drift rate $(8.3\mathrm{nm}∕\min )$. Furthermore, the phase retarder is not sensitive to polarization, introduces a wavefront distortion $<\lambda ∕30$, and tolerates high power densities $(>141\mathrm{kW}∕{\mathrm{cm}}^2)$. We show the dynamics for periodic phase modulation and demonstrate a simple drive technique for fast phase stepping. The polymer-based device is inexpensive, easy to fabricate, and its design can be adapted to specific applications.

© 2009 Optical Society of America

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