Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
We present studies of an optical power limiter that uses a combination of the photoconductive and linear electro-optic effects. The electro-optic power limiter (EOPL), first demonstrated using CdTe in the near IR, possesses many desirable qualities including broadband wavelength responsivity, self-actuation, and low threshold power. One unique capability of EOPL, not found in any other nonlinear optical power limiter, is the fact that any light - coherent or incoherent - can be used. Our studies in CdTe, GaAs, and BSO crystals resulted in extending the wavelength range from the visible to MWIR wavelengths.