Bacteriorhodopsin films as spatial light modulators for nonlinear-optical filtering
Abstract
The application of dry purple membrane films for nonlinear-optical filtering is described. The biological photochrome bacteriorhodopsin (BR) is contained in the purple membrane (PM) from Halobacterium halobium. BR has two dominant photoactive states, B and M, which have well-separated absorption bands with maxima at 570 nm (B) and 412 nm (M). Since the local transmission of a PM film depends on the ratio between the forward (B - M) and the backward (M - B) photoreactions, PM films can be used as light-controlled absorptive spatial light modulators. A model describing the nonlinear transmission of PM films containing the wild-type form of BR or one of its mutated variants, e.g., BR(D96N), and examples of their application in spatial filtering, e.g., edge enhancement, are presented.
- Publication:
-
Optics Letters
- Pub Date:
- May 1991
- DOI:
- 10.1364/OL.16.000651
- Bibcode:
- 1991OptL...16..651T
- Keywords:
-
- Light Modulation;
- Nonlinear Optics;
- Optical Filters;
- Photochromism;
- Absorption Spectra;
- Bacteria;
- Cell Membranes (Biology);
- Membrane Structures;
- Proteins;
- Optics;
- OPTICAL PROCESSING;
- NONLINEAR OPTICS