Programmable Liquid Crystal Apertures and Filters for Photographic Lenses

LCDs (Liquid Crystal Displays) have become the ubiquitous low-cost display technology, with full color displays offering good resolution costing less than $10. Although LCD modules generally include either a backlight or a reflective backing, the LC panel itself merely modulates light by altering polarization. Thus, it is possible to use a transmissive LC panel as a programmable optical filter, or LCLV (Liquid Crystal Light Valve). This paper explores a variety of potential uses of commodity LC panels, including color panels, to implement programmable apertures and filters for camera lenses.