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Abstract

A photosensitive layer of a liquid crystal light valve is made of a single crystal silicon wafer (14,70) bearing an irregular pattern of diodes (50a,50b, 60a,60b). The diodes are varied in size, shape and location so as to improve resolution, reduce interaction between the diode spatial pattern and the spatial pattern of input data, and, in one embodiment, to eliminate a difficult masking step. A masking step is eliminated by co-depositing a metal vapor and a silicon dioxide vapor to form random islands of cermets (50a,50b), each comprising an island of metal surrounded by a body of silicon dioxide. In other embodiments a pseudo-random mask is employed having an irregular pattern of holes (76) of varied sizes and locations. The mask is employed to photolithographically form an irregular pattern of holes in a silicon dioxide layer (72) laid down over the single crystal silicon (70) and a layer of metal (78) is deposited to provide areas of metal within the irregular pattern of holes in contact with the single crystal silicon layer. Alternatively, the mask with irregular holes may be employed to control areas in which an N-type ion dopant is implanted in a P-type silicon crystal.

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First Claim