Controlled diffractive optical elements containing a vanadium dioxide film

The principles of constructing optical devices on the basis of diffractive structures with a vanadium dioxide film for the control of radiation in the mid-IR range are analyzed. Methods are described for the practical impleme ntation of such devices at lambda=10.6 mu m, and their response characteris tics are calculated. It is shown that a contrast of 1:10(7) can be attained in diffractive optical elements, and the actuation time of the elements wh en switched on by an intense laser beam can be shortened to tens of nanosec onds. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physics. [S1063- 7842(99)01611-6].