A pulsed laser output section outputs a laser beam having a predetermined wavelength as first pulses. An optical path determining section receives the first pulses and determines one among a plurality of optical paths for each of the first pulses for output. A parallelizing section parallelizes a traveling direction of light beams traveling, respectively, through the plurality of optical paths. A wavelength changing section receives outputs from the parallelizing section and changes the outputs to have different wavelengths for output. A focusing section receives and focuses outputs from the wavelength changing section. An optical fiber receives an output from the focusing section at a core end face. A timing control section is arranged to time outputs from the optical path determining section to the output of the first pulses. The focusing section is arranged to focus the outputs from the wavelength changing section on the core end face.

An acousto-optic system may include a laser source, and an AOM coupled to the laser source and having an acousto-optic medium and transducer electrodes carried by the medium. The acousto-optic system may also include an interface board with a dielectric layer and signal contacts carried by the dielectric layer, and connections coupling respective signal contacts with respective transducer electrodes. Each connection may include a dielectric protrusion extending from the AOM, and an electrically conductive layer on the dielectric protrusion for coupling a respective transducer electrode to a respective signal contact.

Aspects of the present disclosure describe techniques for controlling quantum states of ions in an ion chain for a quantum operation. For example, a method is described that includes providing, from a first direction, a global optical beam to the ions in the ion chain, and providing, from a second direction different from the first direction, to each ion in a subset of the ions in the ion chain, a respective addressing optical beam. The method further includes dynamically controlling each of the addressing optical beams being provided by using a respective channel in a multi-channel acousto-optic modulator (AOM) to implement, with the ion chain, one or more quantum gates in a sequence of quantum gates of the quantum operation. Aspects of a quantum information processing (QIP) system that includes the multi-channel AOM for performing the method are also described.

A method for driving an acousto-optic element with an acousto-optic crystal and a piezoelectric transducer for setting the acousto-optic crystal in mechanical vibration includes driving the piezoelectric transducer with a drive signal with at least one drive frequency. The at least one drive frequency in alternation takes on a plurality of different values around a center frequency during a passage of a mechanical vibrational wave through the acousto-optic crystal, such that a grating that is produced owing to density fluctuations in the acousto-optic crystal exhibits different grating spacings at the same time.

Apparatus include a photoelastic modulator (PEM) optical element, a controller having a frequency generator configured to produce a frequency signal at a selected frequency based on a clock signal of the controller wherein the controller is configured to produce a PEM driving signal based on the frequency signal, a PEM transducer coupled to the PEM optical element and the controller and configured to drive the PEM with the PEM driving signal, and a detector optically coupled to the PEM optical element and configured to receive a PEM modulated output and to produce a PEM detection signal that includes a PEM modulation signal, wherein the controller is configured to receive the PEM detection signal and to extract the PEM modulation signal from the PEM detection signal using the frequency signal and the clock signal.

An optical instrument for determining a wavelength of light generated by a light source. The optical instrument may include a signal generator for generating a driving signal, a tunable optical filter device configured to receive the driving signal, the tunable optical filter device configured to diffract the light generated by the light source based on the driving signal, an optical detector device configured to detect a timing of maximum diffraction of light diffracted by the tunable optical filter device, and an analyzer configured to determine the wavelength of the light based the timing of maximum diffraction.

A method for adjusting an intensity of a light beam in an optical arrangement includes passing the light beam through an acousto-optical tunable filter (AOTF). The intensity of the light beam is adjusted as a function of frequency and/or amplitude of a sound wave with which the AOTF is operated. The amplitude of the sound wave at a specified sound wave frequency is selected such that the amplitude is larger than would be required to achieve a first maximum diffraction efficiency for a specified wavelength or for a specified wavelength spectrum of the light beam. The amplitude of the sound wave is also selected such that a value of an integral of a product of the transmission function of the AOTF and the wavelength spectrum of the light beam is larger than at a value of the amplitude to be selected to achieve the first maximum.

A tunable acoustic gradient index of refraction (TAG) lens and system are provided that permit, in one aspect, dynamic selection of the lens output, including dynamic focusing and imaging. The system may include a TAG lens and at least one of a source and a detector of electromagnetic radiation. A controller may be provided in electrical communication with the lens and at least one of the source and detector and may be configured to provide a driving signal to control the index of refraction and to provide a synchronizing signal to time at least one of the source and the detector relative to the driving signal. Thus, the controller is able to specify that the source irradiates the lens (or detector detects the lens output) when a desired refractive index distribution is present within the lens, e.g. when a desired lens output is present.

The present invention concerns a method for generating a pattern of light, this method comprising the following steps: a) emitting an input laser pulse (P1), b) deflecting the input laser pulse (P1) by a first deflector (22) to obtain a first laser pulse, c) deflecting the first laser pulse (P3) by a second deflector (24) to obtain a second laser pulse (P4), and d) focusing the pulse (P4) by an optical element characterized in that: —the first deflector (22) shapes the first laser pulse (P3) according to a first function, —the second deflector (24) shapes the second laser pulse (P4) according to a second function, and —the first function f(x) and the second function g(y) are computed and/or optimized to obtain the desired pattern of light.

Method for determining the characteristics of a system for generating at least one pattern of light, the method comprising: a) providing a desired pattern of light, b) expressing the amplitude and the phase of the output pulse of the system as a function of the input laser pulse and in function of the characteristics of the system to obtain a calculated output pulse, the input laser pulse having a duration below or equal to 1 nanosecond, c) determining at least one characteristic of the system by minimizing a distance between the calculated output pulse and the desired output laser pulse.