Description
Objective: The objective of the activity is to develop CGH to replace classical optics (e.g. (dichroic) beam splitters, lenses...)in optical/quantum communication terminals. In addition, performance simulations shall be validated on CGH test samples. Several CGH device shall be manufactured, and their performance tested. A-thermal designs shall be investigated. Targeted Improvements: 50% reduction in the size, footprint and mass of classical beam splitting and focusing optics.Description: The use of computer-generated holograms (CGH) shall be developed for simplification of the optical design and mass and cost reduction of optical communication terminals. This is achieved by combining multiple functionalities into as single optical element (e.g. beam splitting, focusing, spectraldivision or combination). The activity shall in addition address the following problems related to diffraction efficiency in a thermally representative environment: fibre coupling efficiency and the generation of unwanted stray light. The satellite optical communication market sees a strong customer demand for satellite constellations with thousands of laser terminals. These new systems require mass fabricated, low cost and low footprint units with short development and lead times. CGH technology can improve the required footprint and the alignment effort. Furthermore, the lithographical manufacturing process of CGHs is scalable to dozens of CGHs in asingle fabrication run.Procurement Policy: C(1) = Activity restricted to non-prime contractors (incl. SMEs). For additional information please go to: http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Business_with_ESA/Small_and_Medium_Sized_En…