High frequency light modulation device

摘要

An electrooptic device for controlling the intensity of a monochromatic light beam comprises a first transparent element such as a triangular prism or hemicylindrical prism having a planar surface. A thin layer of a material such as a metal is in contact with the planar surface of the transparent element and a semiconductor material is adjacent to the metal layer. A voltage source provides a potential difference between the metal layer and the semiconductor material to alter the charge density in the semiconductor material to affect the degree of coupling between the light beam entering the device and surface plasmon waves generated within the device to correspondingly control the intensity of the light beam exiting the device.