Summary Overview: Despite extensive research, brain function and neurological diseases like Huntington disease are still poorly understood. Complexities arise from the vast quantity of neurons in the human brain and from the densely interconnected networks of intermixed cell types. This makes controlling brain function a formidable challenge, and underscores the
Summary Pulse ShapingOverview: By modulating the phase and/or amplitude of the spectral components of broadband femtosecond pulses, it is possible to generate arbitrarily shaped ultrafast optical waveforms. These pulse shaping techniques enable precise control over the pulse shape in both the time domain and frequency domain, which is crucial for
Summary “Recent Research Using Meadowlark Spatial Light Modulators” highlights innovative uses of Meadowlark Optics’ Spatial Light Modulators (SLMs) across various scientific and technological fields. It provides detailed applications, critical requirements, and references for further reading. SLMs have become essential tools in adaptive optics, volumetric imaging, optogenetics, fiber-based optical manipulation, and
Download Principles Meadowlark Optics award-winning Spatial Light Modulators (SLMs) provide precision retardance control for spatially varying phase or amplitude requirements. Our SLMs consist of liquid crystal (LC) pixels, each independently addressed, acting as separate variable retarders. These SLMs are easily incorporated into optical systems requiring programmable masks and variable input/output
Geometric-phase microscopy (GPM) uses changes in the phase of light passing through biological specimens to yield high-resolution and high-contrast images, instead of relying on the attenuation of light used conventionally. Polarization optics and a spatial light modulator generate spatially variant polarization states of light that interact with the sample, creating
Summary Since 2019, quantum optics has emerged as one of the most vibrant sub-fields in modern physics, driving innovation across light-matter interactions, quantum information science, and photonic technologies. Recent research has focused on understanding the complex optical properties and quantum mechanical behavior of light, including novel manipulation techniques involving geometric
Optical Encryption Research Sources Optical encryption is a way of securing digital data like a locked door. Instead of a physical key, though, it uses light. Optical encryption and spatial light modulators have become an important part of data security. By leveraging the power of light to protect data, it
Summary Customized spatial light modulators (SLMs) are revolutionizing beam shaping for high-energy fusion-class laser systems. Designed for precision optical control, these modulators are strategically placed in a low-fluence relay plane to introduce programmable beam obscurations, mitigating potential damage from small optical component flaws that could otherwise limit system performance. This
Pulse Shaping Application Note Overview: Quantum computing is a type of computing that uses the rules of quantum physics to process information. Instead of using bits of information (1s and 0s) like a regular computer, quantum computers use qubits, which can represent a 0, a 1, or both at the
Summary Holographic optical tweezing leverages tightly focused laser beams to precisely manipulate objects in three-dimensional space, making it a powerful tool for fundamental physics, biological research, and cold atom trapping. By utilizing a spatial light modulator (SLM) to modulate the phase of an incident laser beam, this technique generates a
Summary Advancements in microscopy imaging are addressing key challenges such as spherical aberration correction in 3D imaging, motion artifact reduction, and the development of new imaging modalities. Spatial light modulators (SLMs) play a crucial role in enhancing traditional microscopy by dynamically controlling wavefronts to optimize image quality. By integrating SLMs,
Welcome to Meadowlark Optics, Photonics Media Reader Browse our online products below, or Visit Our Online Store to Filter and Sort. Read more Polarimeter Compact No moving parts Broad wavelength range Versatile Configuration User-Friendly Operation High Sensitivity Our NEW user-friendly Liquid Crystal Stokes vector Polarimeter (PMI-2000) provides high accuracy and
Summary Fiber optic communications are now being integrated with spatial light modulators (SLMs) for deep tissue imaging, overcoming optical scattering limitations. Multi-mode fibers (MMFs) are particularly advantageous due to their small form factor, minimizing tissue damage during biomedical imaging applications. However, a key challenge in MMF-based imaging is that fiber
Summary In order to understand biological functions at a system level it is necessary to image interconnectivity of processes in real time. This is particularly relevant in neuroscience, where the BRAIN initiative is funding research to understand how the brain functions, and how that function is altered by disease. This
Summary Adaptive optics (AO) was originally developed to correct aberrations caused by atmospheric turbulence in monochromatic imaging and laser communication systems. By integrating a liquid crystal spatial light modulator (SLM), wavefront distortions can be precisely corrected, restoring diffraction-limited image quality. Recent advancements have extended these techniques to biological imaging, where
Summary Diffraction-limited one-photon fluorescence microscopy of deep brain regions in vivo has recently been demonstrated through multimode optical fibres (MMF) [1,2], a promising approach in adaptive optics microscopy and biological imaging. An essential component of such microscopy adaptive optics systems is a spatial light modulator, a widely used adaptive optics
Summary Two-photon polymerization (TPP) is a leading technique for fabricating 2D and 3D nanostructures with sub-diffraction-limit features. This study introduces an open-hardware, open-software holographic multibeam TPP system featuring a phase-only spatial light modulator (SLM) and a three-mirror scan head. The novel three-reflective surface design—with two mirrors scanning along the same
Summary We report quantitative label-free imaging with phase and polarization (QLIPP) for simultaneous measurement of density, anisotropy, and orientation of structures in unlabeled live cells and tissue slices, using advanced image processing techniques. We combine QLIPP with deep neural networks and machine learning models to predict fluorescence images of diverse
Summary Discovering how neural computations are implemented in the cortex at the level of monosynaptic connectivity requires probing for the existence of synapses from possibly thousands of presynaptic candidate neurons. Two-photon optogenetics has been shown to be a promising technology for mapping such monosynaptic connections via serial stimulation of neurons
Summary Incoming visual signals. Despite the importance of recurrent circuits for cortical processing, the basic rules that govern how nearby cortical neurons influence each other remain enigmatic. We used two-photon holographic optogenetics to activate ensembles of neurons in Layer 2/3 of the primary visual cortex (V1) in the absence of
Summary The biophysical limitations of existing optogenetic tools restrict the scale, speed, and precision of neural control. Using structure-guided mutagenesis, we have engineered high-potency opsins that retain fast kinetics, enabling large-scale, spatiotemporally precise control of neuronal populations. These novel opsins have been extensively benchmarked against existing optogenetic tools and characterized
Summary Wavefront-controlled light focusing through step-index multimode optical fibers (MMFs) enables minimally invasive endoscopic imaging of biological tissue. However, the spatially variant point spread function (PSF) of MMF imaging systems poses challenges for traditional deconvolution algorithms, which assume a uniform PSF. To address this, we developed svmPSF, an open-source Java-based
Summary We present two distinct, complementary methods for improving axial resolution in three-dimensional structured illumination microscopy (3D SIM) with minimal or no modification to the optical system. First, we show that placing a mirror directly opposite the sample enables 4-beam interference with higher spatial frequency content than 3D SIM illumination,
Summary The hippocampus is crucial for spatial navigation, spatial memory, and episodic memory formation. Hippocampal place cells exhibit spatially selective activity within an environment and are thought to form the neural basis of a cognitive map of space that supports these complex cognitive skills and mnemonic functions. Researchers have proposed
Summary Adaptive optics methods have long been used to perform complex light shaping at the output of a multimode fiber (MMF), with the specific aimofcontrolling the emitted beam in the near field and enabling the realization of a new generation of endoscopes based on a wide variety of spectroscopic techniques.
Summary The integration of plasmonic structures with step-index optical fibers is gaining traction for both fundamental research and practical applications. However, the challenge lies in dynamically controlling the interaction between guided light fields and plasmonic resonances, as multimode fiber (MMF) propagation introduces turbidity. This limitation has historically restricted the potential
