Anomalous liquid crystal undershoot effect resulting in a nematic liquid crystal-based spatial light modulator with one millisecond response time

We report here, a single crystal silicon-based spatial light modulator demonstrating a millisecond response time using a nematic liquid crystal operated in the surface mode configuration. This unexpected fast response time can be explained by a combination of liquid crystal voltage undershoot and the transient nematic effect. The fast response time measured is concurrent with high spatial resolution and gray scale capability which make this device unique in its class.