Graphene-enabled electrically controlled terahertz spatial light modulators

In this Letter, we demonstrate a broadband terahertz (THz) spatial light modulator using 5 x 5 arrays of large area graphene supercapacitors. Our approach relies on controlling spatial charge distribution on a passive matrix array of patterned graphene electrodes. By changing the voltage bias applied to the rows and columns, we were able to pattern the THz transmittance through the device with high modulation depth and low operation voltage. We anticipate that the simplicity of the device architecture with high contrast THz modulation over a broad spectral range could provide new tools for THz imaging and communication systems. (C) 2015 Optical Society of America