To meet the demand for ever-increasing data transfer rates in fiber optic communications, there is great interest in space-division multiplexing of light. Mode-division multiplexing, a subset of space-division multiplexing, increases the channel capacity of a system by spatial conversion and coupling of optical signals into the orthogonal modes of a multimode fiber channel. Current mode multiplexers, which rely on directional couplers, photonic lanterns, and free-space optics, can be challenging to fabricate, align, and scale to a large number of modes with low loss and crosstalk. As a result, more resources have to be spent on amplifiers and digital signal processing which increases the cost of the communications system. Metasurfaces offer a solution to this problem and have shown wide success in realizing various optics. Being lithographically patterned with subwavelength-scale dielectric structures, metasurfaces allow full control of the wavefront. We adopt a folded metasurface configuration by coating the dielectric structures with cladding and depositing metal on both sides of a glass substrate. Inside the substrate, light interacts with the metasurface multiple times to yield unprecedented abilities in shaping light. Based on this platform, we demonstrate a metasurface mode multiplexer design with low loss and crosstalk in the telecom. It directly aligns to an array of input fibers and an output fiber and converts each input mode into the orthogonal modes of the latter fiber. Short-distance and long-haul communication systems such as data centers and submarine links, respectively, can benefit from this mode multiplexer.
We present a new platform that realizes high performance metasurfaces in the visible spectrum. This platform is based on atomic layer deposition of titanium dioxide and allows molding incident light wavefront to desired shapes including holographic images, optical vortices, and Bessel beams. The focus of this work will be on the design and demonstration of planar metalenses. We report on our recent experimental realization of high numerical aperture metalenses with efficiency as high as 86%. These metalenses can focus light into a diffraction-limited spot and can be employed for imaging purposes to provide sub-wavelength imaging resolution. In addition, by the judicious design of metalens building blocks, one can achieve a multispectral chiral metalens (MCML) within a single metasurface layer. The MCML can simultaneously resolve chiral and spectral information of an object without the requirement of additional optical components such as polarizers, wave-plates, or even gratings. Using this MCML, we map the chiroptical properties of a macroscopic chiral biological specimen across the visible range. Finally, since many applications require polarization insensitive planar lenses, we discuss the experimental realization of such metalenses with numerical apertures as high as NA=0.85. These metalenses can focus incident light to a spot as small as ~0.6lambda with efficiencies up to 70%. The straightforward and CMOS-compatible fabrication process of this platform is promising for a wide range of optics-based applications in multidisciplinary science and technology.
Using immersion lenses is a common approach to enhance the resolving power in various fields of optics such as microscopy and lithography. However, conventional immersion lenses are bulky, high-cost and are typically designed for only a few specific immersion liquids. The development of meta-surfaces provides a promising approach to manipulate light in a compact configuration, enabling many optical devices such as polarizers, waveplates and lenses. These are mainly focused in the near-infrared or the long-wavelength region of the visible spectrum due to fabrication challenges and intrinsic losses of materials used. Here, we demonstrate oil immersion planar lenses with a numerical aperture of 1.1 at visible wavelengths. The lenses provide diffraction-limited focal spots with Strehl ratios higher than 0.9 and 0.8 at their design wavelengths of 532 nm and 405 nm, respectively. Fabrication is based on an atomic-layer deposition (ALD) of TiO2. The loss of TiO2 in the visible is negligible and the surface roughness is well-controlled due to the precise monolayer growth of the TiO2 film. By applying the lens (designed at 532 nm) in a confocal scanning microscopy setup, we are able to achieve high-quality images with sub-wavelength resolution. It should be noted that this lens can be efficiently tailored for any liquid. We demonstrate another design for water-immersion lenses, which are highly applicable to super-resolution bio-imaging applications. The compactness and design flexibility of this platform is highly promising for widespread applications in imaging and spectroscopy.
Access to the requested content is limited to institutions that have purchased or subscribe to SPIE eBooks.
You are receiving this notice because your organization may not have SPIE eBooks access.*
*Shibboleth/Open Athens users─please
sign in
to access your institution's subscriptions.
To obtain this item, you may purchase the complete book in print or electronic format on
SPIE.org.
INSTITUTIONAL Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.
PERSONAL Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.