Ultrathin van der Waals metalenses

TL;DR

This paper introduces ultrathin van der Waals material-based metalenses that achieve near diffraction-limited focusing at a fraction of the wavelength thickness, enabling flexible, tunable, and miniaturized optical systems.

Contribution

It presents the first ultrathin dielectric metalenses using van der Waals materials with ~bb/b wavelength thickness, utilizing incomplete phase design for efficient light manipulation.

Findings

Achieved device thickness down to ~bb/10.

Demonstrated near diffraction-limited focusing and imaging.

Showed strain-induced tunable focusing on flexible substrates.

Abstract

Ultrathin and flat optical lenses are essential for modern optical imaging, spectroscopy, and energy harvesting. Dielectric metasurfaces comprising nanoscale quasi-periodic resonator arrays are promising for such applications, as they can tailor the phase, amplitude, and polarization of light at subwavelength resolution, enabling multi-functional optical elements. To achieve 2\pi phase coverage, however, most dielectric metalenses need a thickness comparable to the wavelength, requiring fabrication of high-aspect-ratio scattering elements. Here, we report ultrathin dielectric metalenses made of van der Waals (vdW) materials, leveraging their high refractive indices and the incomplete phase design approach to achieve device thicknesses down to ~\lambda/10, operating at infrared and visible wavelengths. These materials have generated strong interest in recent years due to their advantageous optoelectronic properties. Using vdW metalenses, we demonstrate near diffraction-limited focusing and imaging, and exploit their layered nature to transfer the fabricated metalenses onto flexible substrates to show strain-induced tunable focusing. Our work enables further downscaling of optical elements and opportunities for integration of metasurface optics in ultra-miniature optoelectronic systems.