Dielectric geometric phase optical elements from femtosecond direct laser writing

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates using femtosecond direct laser writing to create dielectric optical elements that generate structured light with controlled angular momentum, enabling scalable flat optics for advanced photonic applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel fabrication method for spin-controlled geometric phase optical elements using femtosecond laser writing in photo-resist materials.

Findings

Successful fabrication of spin-to-orbital angular momentum couplers

Generation of optical vortices with topological charge 1 to 20

Scalable fabrication of flat optical components

Abstract

We propose to use femtosecond direct laser writing technique to realize dielectric optical elements from photo-resist materials for the generation of structured light from purely geometrical phase transformations. This is illustrated by the fabrication and characterization of spin-to-orbital optical angular momentum couplers generating optical vortices of topological charge from 1 to 20. In addition, the technique is scalable and allows obtaining microscopic to macroscopic flat optics. These results thus demonstrate that direct 3D photopolymerization technology qualifies for the realization of spin-controlled geometric phase optical elements.