MEMS Refocusing Concentrator for Free Space Optics

MicroAssembly Technologies and Lawrence Livermore National Laboratories propose a MEMS-based refocusing secondary concentrator for regenerating optical signals distorted by atmospheric disturbances. An efficient secondary concentrator, based onMicroAssembly's high fill-factor micromirrors, would offer an adaptive optics solution for penetrating last-mile barriers. With the development of the proposed secondary concentrator with an adaptive optics beam quality regenerator, link-margins can beimproved by many dBs, extending the range of reliable service to reach the great majority of office buildings. This could enable a free-space WDM all-optical link in a scalable `pay-as-you-grow' architecture over unlicensed optical frequencies.Free space communications would also help foster competition to reach the end-customer.