Optometaphoresis: programmable metaphotonics by particle migration and light-bending in nanoparticle colloids controlled by near-field micro-structured current-voltage-energized phased-array antenna-electrodes inducing dielectrophoresis

An electrode system for redirecting and controlling input light by dielectrophoresis, comprising:

• (a) at least one resistive and transparent electrode, to provide electric fields either normal to, or parallel to, said electrode when energized with an appropriate harmonic (sinusoidal and oscillating) electrical signal, wherein these electrodes may be solid pixelated structures or segmented into parallel segmented wires that forms a locally and substantially planar electrode;
• (b) a transparent particle colloid sheet, which provides a plurality of particles in a liquid, such that the particles migrate by applied dielectrophoretic forces and torques, by at least one of translation, orientation, and deformation;
• (c) at least one electrical signal source, which energizes said electrodes with oscillating harmonic signals at a dielectrophoretic frequency substantially different than optical frequencies;
• (d) at least one electronic controller, that modifies signal strength and phase to each said electrode and each said wire forming a segmented electrode to achieve a particular light control objective;
• and
• (e) at least one combined electrode holder and colloid container;
• wherein said electrodes are placed internal to said at least one combined electrode holder and colloid container so that said electrodes and said colloid sheet are juxtaposed, but not necessarily touching, and where said electrodes are voltage-electrodes when harmonic voltage-signals have a phase difference of 0 radians across a resistive and transparent electrode, which induces electric fields normal to the plane of the electrodes;
• and where said electrodes are current-electrodes when harmonic voltage-signals have a phase difference of π radians across a resistive and transparent electrode, which induces electric fields parallel to the plane of the electrodes and parallel to said wires in wire segmented electrodes;
• and where the electrode-to-electrode and wire-to-wire magnitude and phase provided by apodization control from said electronic controller modifies the effective wire resistance via channel resistances of transistors, wire-to-wire voltages, wire-to-wire harmonic phases, and other electronic means to provide multiple modes of particle manipulation within said colloid by dielectrophoresis, which then locally change the local refractive index of said colloid to allow spectrally broadband, polarization diverse, coherent-diverse, power-level-diverse, and large-area light-fields of said input light to be modified dynamically by at least one of programmable refraction, reflection, diffraction, focusing, light-guide ingress, light-guide egress, and general wavefront modification to allow optical devices to be software programmable and dynamically reconfigurable instead of hardware specific and non-reconfigurable, to allow multiple optical functions to be integrated into a robust “solid-state” structure and small volume.