Tunable Microphotonic Devices In Ferroelectrics

This article is based on a paper presented at the 106th Annual Meeting of the ACS. The ability to control the angular position and the spot size of a laser beam with high speed is of interest in many applications, including optical communications, optical data storage, laser printing, analog to digital conversion and display technologies. Of the many competing technologies, solid-state electro optic devices based on ferroelectrics - such as lithium niobate (LiNbO3) and lithium tantalate (LiTaO3) have several advantages over mechanical and other systems.