Gigahertz-rate-switchable wavefront shaping through integration of metasurfaces with photonic integrated circuit

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates gigahertz-rate switchable wavefront shaping by integrating metasurfaces with photonic circuits, enabling high-speed, reconfigurable control of light for advanced optical applications.

Contribution

The work introduces a novel integrated platform combining metasurfaces and photonic circuits for ultrafast, reconfigurable wavefront control at gigahertz speeds.

Findings

Achieved modulation speeds up to gigahertz rate.

Demonstrated reconfigurable focus, polarization, and orbital angular momentum beams.

Showcased potential for high-speed optical communication and sensing.

Abstract

Achieving spatiotemporal control of light at high-speeds presents immense possibilities for various applications in communication, computation, metrology, and sensing. The integration of subwavelength metasurfaces and optical waveguides offers a promising approach to manipulate light across multiple degrees of freedom at high-speed in compact photonic integrated circuit (PICs) devices. Here, we demonstrate a gigahertz-rate-switchable wavefront shaping by integrating metasurface, lithium niobite on insulator (LNOI) photonic waveguide and electrodes within a PIC device. As proofs of concept, we showcase the generation of a focus beam with reconfigurable arbitrary polarizations, switchable focusing with lateral focal positions and focal length, orbital angular momentum light beams (OAMs) as well as Bessel beams. Our measurements indicate modulation speeds of up to gigahertz rate. This integrated platform offers a versatile and efficient means of controlling light field at high-speed within a compact system, paving the way for potential applications in optical communication, computation, sensing, and imaging.