Beam steering system

A beam steering system, comprising:

• a dynamically controllable multi-segment liquid crystal (LC) beam steering device including an array of multiple LC beam steering segments, wherein each LC beam steering segment includes a respective clear aperture;
• and
• an upstream lens array arranged upstream of the multi-segment LC beam steering device, the upstream lens array including multiple upstream lens elements corresponding with the multiple LC beam steering segments;
• wherein each upstream lens element reduces a beam width of a respective light beam to provide a respective reduced-diameter light beam incident at a corresponding LC beam steering segment in the multi-segment LC beam steering device, wherein a beam diameter of the respective reduced-diameter beam incident at each LC beam steering segment is smaller than the respective clear aperture of that LC beam steering segment;
• and
• control electronics configured to control each respective LC beam steering segment to directionally steer the respective reduced-diameter beam incident at the respective LC beam steering segment to output a respective directionally steered beam.

A beam steering system, comprising:

• a liquid crystal (LC) beam steering device including:
• LC molecules arranged between a pair of substrates;
• and
• at least one electrode;
• an upstream lens arranged upstream of the LC beam steering device, the upstream lens reducing a beam width of a light beam to provide a reduced-diameter light beam incident at the LC beam steering device;
• and
• a downstream lens arranged downstream of the LC beam steering device, wherein a focal distance of the upstream lens is greater than a focal distance of the downstream lens;
• and
• control electronics configured to dynamically control the at least one electrode of the LC beam steering device to influence the LC molecules to affect a directional steering of the reduced-diameter beam and thereby output a directionally steered beam.