Broadband optical power limiter metalens

TL;DR

This paper introduces a hybrid broadband metalens that acts as an optical power limiter, protecting detectors from high-intensity lasers while maintaining diffraction-limited focusing across a broad wavelength range.

Contribution

It presents a novel hybrid system combining a broadband optical power limiter with a diffraction-limited metalens, demonstrated through numerical simulations.

Findings

Achieves a transmittance difference of about 62.5% between on and off states.

Operates effectively across 1534 nm to 1664 nm wavelength range.

Provides a potential solution for protecting optical detectors from high-power laser damage.

Abstract

In recent years, the need for high-power laser is of great interest for different applications ranging from direct-laser processing, light detection, medicine, and lighting. However, high-power lasers with high intensities give rise to fundamental problems for optical detectors and imaging systems with low threshold damage, which still need reliable solutions. Here, we report and numerically demonstrate a hybrid system that synergically combines a broadband optical power limiter with a transmittance difference between on-state (70^o C) and off-state (25^o C) about 62.5%, and a diffraction-limited broadband metalens from 1534 nm to 1664 nm. Such a metalens power limiter could be used in any system requiring an intermediate focal plane in the optical path to the detector from damage by exposure to high-intensity lasers.