There has been a long-standing need for non-mechanical beam-steering technologies. Electro-optic beam-steerers would find utility in a diverse set of applications, including: free space optical communications, laser range finding or LADAR, laser illumination, directed energy, and remote sensing, to name a few. In these applications, conventional mechanical solutions suffer from sensitivity to vibrations, can be bulky, and may consume several Watts of electrical power (e.g., voice-coil actuated devices). Unfortunately, a viable electro-optic replacement has been a long-standing technical challenge. Liquid crystal phased arrays have yielded impressive results, but at the expense of great complexity (can be thousands of control electrodes), limited optical throughput (can be < 20%), and lack of sufficient (>60 degrees often required) analog steering.

We will present a new approach to this problem by utilizing a liquid crystal waveguide form factor, which enables unprecedented macroscopic (>1 mm) electro-optic phase delays. When combined with patterned electrodes, this LC-technology provides a truly analog, “Snell's- law-type” beam-steerer. With only two control electrodes we have realized an 80 degree field of regard for 1550 nm light. Furthermore, the waveguide geometry keeps the light from ever coming into contact with an ITO electrode. Finally, the beam-steering devices have sub-millisecond response times. Recent prototype results will be presented.