Technologies for Modulation of Visible Light and their Applications

Control over the amplitude, phase, and spatial distribution of visible-spectrum light underlies many technologies, but commercial solutions remain bulky, require high control power, and are often too slow. Active integrated photonics for visible light promises a solution, especially with recent materials and fabrication advances. In this review, we discuss three growing application spaces which rely on control of visible light: control and measurement of atomic quantum technologies, augmented-reality displays, and measurement and control of biological systems. We then review the commercial dynamic surfaces and bulk systems which currently provide visible-light modulation and the current state-of-the-art integrated solutions. Throughout the review we focus on speed, control power, size, optical bandwidth, and technological maturity when comparing technologies.