Generation of arbitrary vector beams based on a single spatial light modulator and a thin-film polarization splitting cubic

Abstract

A setup for the generation of arbitrary vector beams is proposed. The setup mainly consists of a spatial light modulator (SLM), an angle-adjustable polarization beam splitter modulator, and a spatial filtering imaging system. Compared with the system using a birefringent beam splitter with a non-adjustable splitting angle, the polarization splitting angle of the improved setup can be adjusted by slightly rotating the related mirrors, which will bring more convenience when different wavelengths and different pixel sizes of SLMs are involved. The experimental results also demonstrate that the setup possesses a good polarization-selective imaging ability, which reveals that the setup may also be useful in polarization-selective spatial filtering imaging and polarization-encoded encryption.