Deformable mirror is the core component of the adaptive optics system and the primary research object for the research of adaptive optics technology. In this review, the research history of adaptive optics technology, especially the deformable mirror technologies of IOE is reviewed and the early development of our deformable mirror technology is briefly described. The application of the deformable mirror in the inertial confinement fusion (ICF) system of China is introduced and the typical multi-channel deformable mirror technology and application results in the field of astronomical optical observation is also described. Then we introduce the application of compact deformable mirror in biomedical research. At last, some new research directions of deformable mirror technology are revealed.