Integration of metasurfaces onto micro electro mechanical systems for active control of visible and IR light (Conference Presentation)

Abstract

The design and implementation of flat optical photonic devices have come to the forefront of ongoing scientific research and technology development. These novel photonic devices use sub-wavelength metal or dielectric resonators spaced on a specific two-dimensional pattern that mimic the phase profile of conventional bulk optical elements. However, most of these structures, known as “metasurfaces”, have so far been passive with its optical performance determined only by the spatial configuration of the metasurface constitutive elements. The development of dynamic metasurfaces is currently a growing area of research directed to obtain real-time tunable operation of metasurfaces and new physical phenomena not feasible with static metasurfaces. In this presentation, I will describe the fundamentals and advantages of incorporating metallic and dielectric metasurfaces onto MEMS devices. The MEMS platform enables electrostatic control of curvature, tilt angle and deformation of metasurfaces, enabling flat and agile optical elements with msec reconfiguration time. Faster reconfigurable metasurfaces can be achieved using MEMS based spatial light modulators in which individual pixels are patterned with nanostructures having different optical response, e.g. we could pre program fixed phase shifts onto each pixel, so the device works as a curved mirror with aberration correction on top. By actuating specific sub-set of pixels, the far-field response of the adaptive metasurfaces can be manipulated. These unique dynamic metasurfaces may provide new opportunities for information optics and imaging by performing complex signal processing directly in the optical domain.