Patent ID: 6844974

Claim:
An apparatus operable to provide optical signal processing, the apparatus comprising: an inner conductive layer comprising an at least substantially conductive material and a plurality of electrically coupled first conductors; and a plurality of at least partially reflective mirror strips disposed outwardly from the inner conductive layer and operable to receive an input optical signal, wherein none of the plurality of strips has a width greater than 40 microns and wherein at least some of the strips are operable to undergo a partial rotation in response to a control signal, the partial rotation resulting in a reflection of the input optical signal wherein a majority of the reflected input signal is communicated in one direction; wherein each of the plurality of electrically coupled first conductors are associated with a separate one of at least some of the plurality of at least partially reflective mirror strips and disposed approximately inwardly from a first edge of the associated mirror strip; and wherein the control signal comprises a voltage operable to create one of a plurality of selectable non-zero voltage differentials between the inner conductive layer and at least the first edges of the associated mirror strips to create an electrostatic force tending to rotate the first edges of the mirror strips toward the associated first conductor resulting in one of a plurality of selectable angles of rotation of the mirror strips, and a corresponding one of a plurality of selectable attenuations of the input signal.