Visible Hyperspectral Image Projector Based on Spatial Light Modulators

There are many applications for hyperspectral image detectors, but for the detectors to be widely accepted standardized calibration protocols must be developed. This research aims to bridge this gap through the development of a commercially available hyperspectral image projector (HIP) system. The proposed effort is to build a prototype visible HIP system to generate calibrated, realistic imagery with enough fidelity such that, from the viewpoint of the sensor under test, the scene is indistinguishable from the real-world. This system will incorporate two liquid crystal on silicon spatial light modulators (SLM). The first SLM will be used in the spectral engine as a programmable amplitude modulator that will selectively transmit spectral components of a broadband input source. The output of the spectral engine will be fed into a spatial engine, where a second SLM will be used to generate two dimensional scenes. The scenes will be imaged onto a unit under test, and used to quantitatively calibrate the detector. This research will mark the first step toward the development of a commercially available hyperspectral detector calibration system.