THORLABS EXULUS-HD1 User manual

EXULUS-HD1 &
EXULUS-4K1
Spatial Light Modulators
User Guide

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators
Table of Contents
Chapter 1 Warning Symbol Definitions.............................................................................................. 1
Chapter 2 Safety .................................................................................................................................... 2
Chapter 3 Description........................................................................................................................... 3
3.1. Overview ..........................................................................................................................3
3.2. Principle –Liquid Crystal on Silicon.............................................................................3
3.3. Parts List - Accessories..................................................................................................3
3.4. Operating Elements ........................................................................................................5
3.4.1. Front Panel............................................................................................................................5
3.4.2. Rear Panel ............................................................................................................................6
Chapter 4 Setup ..................................................................................................................................... 9
4.1. Installing the SLM............................................................................................................9
4.2. Connect your SLM to the PC........................................................................................10
Chapter 5 Software Operation............................................................................................................14
5.1. Hardware Requirements...............................................................................................14
5.2. Installing the Software..................................................................................................14
5.2.1. Installation of Main UI..........................................................................................................15
5.2.2. Installation of Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0.....................................................................18
5.2.3. Installation of Tcl Driver.......................................................................................................19
5.3. Software GUI..................................................................................................................22
5.3.1. Main Menu...........................................................................................................................23
5.3.2. Preview Window..................................................................................................................24
5.3.3. Operation Mode ..................................................................................................................25
5.3.4. Display Mode ......................................................................................................................25
5.3.5. Sequence Setting................................................................................................................31
5.3.6. Status Bar............................................................................................................................31
Chapter 6 Maintenance........................................................................................................................32
6.1. Basic Care......................................................................................................................32
6.2. Service............................................................................................................................32
Chapter 7 Application Note: Displaying CGH Patterns ..................................................................33
7.1. Holographic Projection.................................................................................................33
7.2. Effects of Focusing and Tilt .........................................................................................35
Chapter 8 Troubleshooting.................................................................................................................37
Chapter 9 Specifications .....................................................................................................................38
Chapter 10 Mechanical Drawing...........................................................................................................39
Chapter 11 CE/FCC Certification..........................................................................................................40
Chapter 12 Regulatory...........................................................................................................................42
Chapter 13 Thorlabs Worldwide Contacts..........................................................................................43

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 1: Warning Symbol Definitions
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 1
Chapter 1 Warning Symbol Definitions
Below is a list of warning symbols you may encounter in this manual or on your device.
Symbol
Description
Direct Current
Alternating Current
Both Direct and Alternating Current
Earth Ground Terminal
Protective Conductor Terminal
Frame or Chassis Terminal
Equipotentiality
On (Supply)
Off (Supply)
In Position of a Bi-Stable Push Control
Out Position of a Bi-Stable Push Control
Caution: Risk of Electric Shock
Caution: Hot Surface
Caution: Risk of Danger
Warning: Laser Radiation
Caution: Spinning Blades May Cause Harm

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 2: Safety
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Chapter 2 Safety
DO NOT OPEN HOUSING
Except for the main fuse, which is accessible from the outside of the housing, Thorlabs’SLM has no
user-serviceable parts. Service should only be performed by trained service personnel.
SHOCK WARNING
High voltage inside. To avoid electrical shock, before powering up, make sure that the ground pin of
the power cord is correctly connected to the ground connector in the power socket. Improper
grounding can cause electric shock resulting in severe injury or even death. Do not operate without
the cover installed.
WARNING
This unit must not be operated in explosive environments.
WARNING
Transportation and delivery may cause the SLM to be warm or cool upon receipt. Please wait for the
whole device to reach room temperature before attempting to operate.
WARNING
Do not operate in wet/damp conditions. Do not obstruct the air ventilation slots in the housing!

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 3: Description
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 3
Chapter 3 Description
This User Manual is written for the users to install and operate the Thorlabs EXULUS-HD1 and EXULUS-4K1 2D
Spatial Light Modulators (SLMs). To ensure correct usage, read this manual carefully before operating your
EXULUS®SLM.
3.1. Overview
The Thorlabs EXULUS SLM is based on reflective Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCoS) technology. It offers individually
addressable pixels of phase shift or retardance, and provides large phase stroke and excellent phase stability.
Therefore the EXULUS is perfect for many beam manipulation applications including optical trapping, beamsteering
and shaping, femtosecond pulse shaping, adaptive optics, imaging applications, holography, and others.
3.2. Principle –Liquid Crystal on Silicon
The Liquid Crystal on Silicon (LCoS) technology is a reflective retarder panel using a liquid crystal layer sandwiched
between the top transparent and conductive ITO layer, and the reflective coating layer which is arranged on the
bottom electrode layer. On the electrode layer, pixels are arranged as individual addressable aluminum electrodes.
Together with the ITO layer on top, an electric field is built by applying a voltage between the two electrodes. The
liquid crystal modules align according to the direction and strength of the electric field. Since liquid crystal is a
birefringent material, the alignment of the liquid crystal modules in turn controls the retardance or phase shift of
each pixel.
Figure 1 Schematic of Liquid Crystal on Silicon
3.3. Parts List - Accessories
The EXULUS SLM is thoroughly tested and carefully packed at the factory. The complete package consists of a
main SLM unit (with removable dust cover) and the following standard accessories:
•Main SLM Unit Power Adapter
•USB Cable
•HDMI*-Compatible Cable
•HDMI-Compatible to DP*-Compatible Cable
•USB Drive with software and Manual
•Hex Key Thumbscrew
*Note: HDMI is a trademark or registered trademark of HDMI Licensing Administrator, Inc. DisplayPort is a
trademark owned by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) in the United States and other countries.
The use of such trademarks by Thorlabs does not constitute or imply any affiliation with or sponsorship, approval,
certification, or endorsement by their respective trademark owners of Thorlabs or any Thorlabs products. All
references by Thorlabs to such trademarks are for identification purposes only.

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Figure 2 Main SLM Unit with Removable Dust Cover
Figure 3 Power Supply
Figure 4 USB Cable
Figure 5 HDMI-Compatible Cable
Figure 6 HDMI-Compatible to DisplayPort-
Compatible Cable
Figure 7 USB Drive with Software and
Manual
Figure 8 Hex Key Thumbscrew, HKTS-5/64

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 3: Description
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 5
3.4. Operating Elements
3.4.1. Front Panel
Figure 9 Front View
Callout
Description
1
Item #
2
Horizontal/Vertical Fine Adjusters
3
30 mm Cage Mounting Holes (4-40, 4 Places)
4
SLM Panel
5
Optical Post Mounting Hole
6
Removable Dust Cover
Horizontal/Vertical Fine Adjuster
Adjust the horizontal and vertical tilt of the Liquid Crystal panel. The designed adjustment range is ±3.2° for both
horizontal and vertical.
4-40 Tapped Holes
These 4-40 mounting holes are designed for the Thorlabs 30 mm cage system. For more application ideas please
refer to www.thorlabs.com.
2
3
4
5
6
1

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Optical Post Mounting Holes
The optical post mounting holes are reserved for the Thorlabs optical post. The imperial version has 8-32 tapped
holes, and the metric version (/M) has M4 tapped holes.
Removable Dust Cover
Prior to shipping, a magnetically coupleddust cover is installed on the front face of the Liquid Crystal panel. Remove
it before using your SLM. While using the SLM, mount the dust cover on either side panels of the SLM main unit,
as illustrated in Figure 9.
3.4.2. Rear Panel
Figure 10 Rear side of EXULUS-HD1
Callout
Description
1
Item #
2
Serial Number
3
USB 2.0 Connector
4
HDMI-Compatible Connector
5
Power Switch
6
DC Input
3
4
5
6
2
1

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 3: Description
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 7
Figure 11 Rear side of EXULUS-4K1/M
Callout
Description
1
Item #
2
Serial Number
3
USB 2.0 Connector
4
HDMI-Compatible Connector
5
Trigger Output Connector (SMA), 3.3 V TTL
6
Power Switch
7
DC Input
3
4
5
7
2
1
6

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 3: Description
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Trigger Output
The trigger output connector (SMA) of EXULUS-4K1(/M) generates an output signal which can be used to
synchronize external devices with the SLM.
The output signal is a 3.3V TTL with 77us of pulse width. The frequency follows the refresh rate set using the display
setting, i.e. 24 Hz or 30 Hz, see Chapter 4.2. for details.
Figure 12 Trigger Output of EXULUS-4K1(/M), Refresh Rate of 30 Hz

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 4: Setup
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 9
Chapter 4 Setup
4.1. Installing the SLM
SHOCK WARNING
High voltage inside. To avoid electrical shock, before powering up, make sure that the ground pin of
the power cord is correctly connected to the ground connector in the power socket. Improper
grounding can cause electric shock resulting in severe injury or even death. Do not operate without
the cover installed.
WARNING
This unit must not be operated in explosive environments.
WARNING
Transportation and delivery may cause the SLM to be warm or cool upon receipt. Please wait for the
whole device to reach room temperature before attempting to operate.
WARNING
Do not operate in wet/damp conditions. Do not obstruct the air ventilation slots in the housing!
To operate your SLM properly, place it on your lab table. There are four rubber feet on the bottom of the device to
prevent sliding. Also two tapped holes are reserved for the mounting from the bottom, as shown in Figure 13.
Figure 13 Post Mounting the SLM with Thorlabs’ Ø1/2" Posts

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 4: Setup
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For other applications with lower beam height, such as SLM with Thorlabs OTKB(/M) Tweezer System, the four
tapped holes on both left and right sides can also be used for mounting, see Figure 14.
Figure 14 Mounting the SLM using the taps on the side of the unit for use in an optical tweezers
system.
4.2. Connect your SLM to the PC
To operate your SLM with your computer, follow the steps below:
•Connect the included power supply to the mains power and the DC input on the rear panel.
•Connect the SLM to a high speed USB 2.0 port of your computer. Use only the cable that is bundled with
the SLM or a cable qualified for high speed USB 2.0 standard.
•Connect the SLM to an HDMI-compatible (or DP-Compatible) port of your computer. Use one of the
packaged HDMI-compatible or DP-compatible cables.
•Switch the power switch to the “ON” position and wait for the system initialization.
Note:
The Liquid Crystal panel is quickly warmed up after the power is turned on. It may take up to about 30 minutes to
reach the stabilized temperature. Since the phase of the SLM panel is slightly dependent on temperature, for
applications which are sensitive to phase fluctuation, we recommend waiting for 30 minutes after power on.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 4: Setup
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•Wait for Windows to recognize the hardware. The SLM connects to the computer as a USB Serial Port.
Connection can be verified in the Device Manager, under the Ports list.
•Additionally, wait for Windows to detect the SLM as a secondary display. Check the connection of the SLM
panel by right-clicking on the desktop and choose “Screen Resolution”.
Once the SLM display has been detected, your computer will show it as an additional display.
For EXULUS-HD1(/M) the resolution is 1920 x 1080 Pixel (FHD) and the refresh rate is 60Hz.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 4: Setup
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For EXULUS-4K1 the resolution is 3840 x 2160 Pixel (UHD) and the refresh rate is 30Hz.
Note:
For EXULUS-4K1, there are three resolutions and refresh rates available:
•3840 x 2160, 30Hz
•3840 x 2160, 24Hz
•4094 x 2400, 24Hz (not available with all graphics cards)
All of the above modes are optimized for the device. However, Windows might show other resolutions or refresh
rates. Therefore it is recommended to set the modes to one of the above, by clicking the “Advance settings” and
using the “Monitor Settings” of your device.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 4: Setup
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 13
Note:
If the SLM display is not shown as extended, try the Win + P key combination, and configure SLM display in
Extended Mode.
•Run the “Spatial Light Modulator” software. It may take several seconds before the software is ready to
connect.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 5: Software Operation
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Chapter 5 Software Operation
5.1. Hardware Requirements
To run the “Spatial Light Modulator” software, you need to have a computer that meets the following hardware
requirements:
•Operating System: Windows 7, 64 bit only
•One available high speed USB 2.0 port
•CPU: Intel Core i3 or above
•RAM: 2 GB or more
•One available HDMI-compatible Port or DisplayPort.
5.2. Installing the Software
The “Spatial Light Modulator” software can be downloaded from the Thorlabs website or run from the bundled USB
drive. The installation contains three parts:
•Installation of Main UI
•Installation of Microsoft .NET framework 4.0
•Installation of Tcl Driver
Start the Install Shield Wizards by double-clicking the “setup.exe”.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 5: Software Operation
Rev I, October 18, 2022 Page 15
5.2.1. Installation of Main UI
The main UI is installed in your computer first. Click the “Next” to continue.
Click “I accept the License Agreement“ and “Next” to continue the installation.

EXULUS-HD1 & EXULUS-4K1 Spatial Light Modulators Chapter 5: Software Operation
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Click “Next” to start the installation.

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Click “Next” to finish the installation of the main UI and start the installation of Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0.

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5.2.2. Installation of Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0
The installer proceeds to install the Microsoft .NET Framework 4.0 automatically. Wait for the installation to be
finished. Note that if .NET Framework 4.0 is already installed, the installation automatically skips and proceeds
forward.
When finished, installer continues with Tcl Driver installation.