Metasurface Elements Research Articles

A Wideband Polarization-Insensitive Bistatic Radar Cross-Section Reduction Design Based on Hybrid Spherical Phase-Chessboard Metasurfaces

A wideband polarization-insensitive bistatic radar cross-section (RCS) reduction design under linear and circular polarization incidence is proposed based on spherical-chessboard metasurfaces. A new metasurface element with wideband characteristics was designed, including a double split-ring structure, single-layer media, and metal board. In the proposed RCS-reduction design, the Pancharatnam–Berry (P-B) phase theory is applied with the designed metasurface element to realize phase distribution mimicking the low-scattering sphere, and thus realizing RCS reduction. In addition, the chessboard configuration is combined with spherical phase distribution to further improve the performance of monostatic and bistatic RCS reduction. Finally, the proposed RCS reduction design can not only realize wideband RCS reduction but also exhibit polarization-insensitive characteristics. It realized 10 dB monostatic and bistatic RCS reduction in a frequency band ranging from 8.5 to 21 GHz (84.8% relative bandwidth) under linear polarization (LP) and circular polarization (CP) incidence. The straightforward and efficient design method of the hybrid spherical chessboard can effectively avoid the complex and time-consuming optimization process in RCS-reduction design.

Embedded circuit analysis and design method for reconfigurable metasurface element

Embedded circuit analysis and design method for reconfigurable metasurface element

Perfect vortex beams generation based on reflective geometric phase metasurfaces

Perfect vortex beam (PVB) is a propagating light field with radial intensity distribution independent of topological charge and carrying orbital angular momentum (OAM). PVBs can be generated through the Fourier transformation of a Bessel-Gaussian (BG) beam, which traditionally requires a precisely aligned optical setup consisting of a spiral phase plate, a conical lens, and a Fourier lens. However, such traditional schemes are usually bulky and unstable. Here, we have utilized a method that differs from conventional approaches, employing metasurfaces designed as planar Pancharatnam-Berry (PB) phase elements to substitute for all the required components. Unlike traditional methods based on reflective or refractive elements, metasurface elements can significantly reduce the system's footprint. Because the use of metallic metasurfaces allows for a more flattened design plane, in this paper, we have demonstrated the generation of PVB within the 8 GHz microwave frequency band based on a single-layer metallic metasurface. The metasurface is composed of a square ring metal structure, which can serve as a half wave plate to provide the required geometric phase distribution for incident circularly polarized light to generate PVB. By rigorously optimizing the parameters of the square-ring structures, we have generated vortex beams carrying OAM with different topological charges. These vortex beams exhibit a constant radial intensity distribution, which validates their "perfect" characteristics. In addition, we also extracted the mode purity of different vortex beams, so that the mode states of different vortex beams can be distinguished. These results provide broader value for the application of perfect vortex beams in communication.

Programmable metasurfaces with high angular stability for arbitrarily-polarized obliquely-incident waves

Programmable metasurfaces show enormous potential in real-time electromagnetic (EM) manipulation and their stable responses to variable EM waves including incident angle and polarization changes are crucial for related applications. However, the demonstrated programmable metasurfaces are commonly considered in normal-incident waves with fixed polarization; how to achieve stable performance in more realistic scenarios of wide-angle and full-polarized wave incidences is still a challenge. Here, we propose and realize a wide-angle and full-polarization programmable metasurface, which can generate stabilized amplitude and phase responses at both transverse electric (TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) oblique incidences. These are achieved by introducing metallic walls around the metasurface element to reduce element coupling, which greatly improves the angular stability of its reflection responses. The mechanisms of angular insensitivity are analyzed comprehensively, and as a proof of concept, obliquely-incident beam steering, large-angle beam scanning and oblique vortex beam emitting are demonstrated on this programmable metasurface. Both the simulation and experimental results demonstrate that the programmable metasurface can operate well at both TE and TM wide-angle oblique incidences in the upper half space. Our work offers an actual route for improving the angular stability and polarization insensitivity of metasurfaces, which could push them one step closer towards more complicated applications.

Experimental verification of nonreciprocal electromagnetic metasurface in a finite‐size array

AbstractThis paper presents experimental verification results for a finite‐sized array of a simple non‐reciprocal metasurface elements. The metasurface elements consists of ferrite loaded metal patches. Experimental results demonstrate nonreciprocity, achieving isolation exceeding 20 dB at 6.4 GHz in a 2×2 array. Additionally, these findings are compared with simulation results for a 4×4 array to validate its practicality in a finite array setting.

Space-Time-Coding Digital Metasurface Element Design Based on State Recognition and Mapping Methods With CNN-LSTM-DNN

Space-Time-Coding Digital Metasurface Element Design Based on State Recognition and Mapping Methods With CNN-LSTM-DNN

High-efficiency single-layer corporate-feed gap waveguide based circularly polarized antenna array with compact size

A high-efficiency, single-layer gap waveguide based circularly polarized (CP) metasurface (MTS) antenna array has been proposed at Ka-band, employing a combination of printed circuit board (PCB) and machining techniques. The coupling slot parallel to the feeding ridge is proposed, which can be beneficial for designing single-layer ridge gap waveguide (RGW) networks, avoiding the traditional cavity layer and reducing the transmission loss. The MTS elements in a 4 × 4 lattice of truncated-corner patches are etched on a single substrate layer for lightweight and low-cost, validating the concept of a compact mixed design that can be easily adapted to other printed CP antennas. A 4 × 4 MTS array prototype was fabricated and tested. The impedance bandwidth and axial ratio bandwidth are 26–31.3 GHz (18.5%) and 28.2–33 GHz (15.7%), respectively. Over the entire operating bandwidth of 28.2–31.3 GHz (10.4%), antenna radiation efficiency exceeds 82%, and the maximum realized gain at 29.2 GHz is 21.2 dBi. The designed broadband MTS antenna array is efficient, compact, and suitable for certain millimeter-wave communication applications.

Design of polarization convert metasurface element with high angle stability

This paper proposed a high angle stability polarization convert metasurface element. The element has one dielectric substrate with the bending lines on the top layer and metallic ground on the bottom layer. A method of priority optimize polarization conversion ratio(PCR) under oblique incident angle based on impedance analysis is proposed to realize high angle stability. And the proposed element can convert linear polarization to orthogonality polarization at 60° incident angle with 17.8% relative bandwidth with more resonances compared with normal incident. Both the PCR and bandwidth of the proposed element increase from 0° to 45° incident angle which different with traditional polarization convert elements. A metasurface with the high angle stability element is fabricated and the measured results are in good agreement with simulated results.

Unleashing the potential: AI empowered advanced metasurface research

Abstract In recent years, metasurface, as a representative of micro- and nano-optics, have demonstrated a powerful ability to manipulate light, which can modulate a variety of physical parameters, such as wavelength, phase, and amplitude, to achieve various functions and substantially improve the performance of conventional optical components and systems. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is an emerging strong and effective computational tool that has been rapidly integrated into the study of physical sciences over the decades and has played an important role in the study of metasurface. This review starts with a brief introduction to the basics and then describes cases where AI and metasurface research have converged: from AI-assisted design of metasurface elements up to advanced optical systems based on metasurface. We demonstrate the advanced computational power of AI, as well as its ability to extract and analyze a wide range of optical information, and analyze the limitations of the available research resources. Finally conclude by presenting the challenges posed by the convergence of disciplines.

All‐Dielectric High‐Q Dynamically Tunable Transmissive Metasurfaces

AbstractActive metasurfaces, which are arrays of actively tunable resonant elements, can dynamically control the wavefront of the scattered light at a subwavelength scale. To date, most active metasurfaces that enable dynamic wavefront shaping operate in reflection. On the other hand, active metasurfaces operating in transmission are of considerable interest as they can readily be integrated with chip‐scale light sources, yielding ultra‐compact wavefront shaping devices. Here, designs for all‐dielectric low‐loss active metasurfaces which can dynamically manipulate the transmitted light wavefront in the near‐infrared wavelength range are reported. The active metasurfaces feature an array of amorphous silicon (a‐Si) pillars on a silica (SiO2) substate, which support resonances with quality factors (Q‐factors) as high as 9800. The high‐Q resonance dips observed in transmission can be transformed into transmission resonance peaks by positioning a‐Si pillar resonators at a prescribed distance from a crystalline Si substrate. The design of metasurface geometry with realistic interconnect architectures that enable thermo‐optic dynamic beam switching with switching times as low as 7.3 µs is reported. Beam switching is observed for refractive index differences between neighboring metasurface elements as low as 0.0026. It is shown that the metasurface structures with realistic interconnect architectures can be used for dynamic beam steering.

Co‐Prime Modulation for Space‐Time‐Coding Digital Metasurfaces with Ultralow‐Scattering Characteristics

AbstractMulti‐dimensional modulation of electromagnetic (EM) waves is critical in various fields such as electronic and photonic systems. Space‐time‐coding (STC) digital metasurfaces, an innovative platform for programmable metasurfaces, offer a straightforward and robust solution for spatio‐temporal modulation, thereby enabling EM‐wave manipulations in both space and frequency. Conventional STC schemes rely on periodic temporal modulations that are uniform in space (i.e., with same modulation frequency in all metasurface elements), and therefore do not take advantage of spatio‐temporal coupling effects that can be induced by non‐uniform periodic modulations (i.e., with different modulation frequencies across the metasurface elements). Here, a novel approach involving non‐uniform spatio‐temporal modulation, alongside co‐prime modulation, is introduced. This approach enhances the fundamental principles of STC digital metasurfaces and facilitates the synthesis of angular scattering responses across different frequencies, guided by harmonic coupling conditions. The proposed strategy results in a more even distribution of the scattered intensity in both space and frequency. For validation, an experimental proof‐of‐principle for spatial‐spectral diffuse scattering is presented. The experimental outcomes align closely with theoretical predictions, underscoring the effectiveness of co‐prime modulation in achieving ultralow‐scattering characteristics in STC digital metasurfaces. Moreover, this technique holds promise for applications in secure wireless communications, radar jamming, and complex beamforming.

Microsphere photolithography with dynamic angular spectra control for metasurface fabrication.

Microsphere photolithography (MPL) is a promising technique for cost-effective fabrication of large-scale metasurfaces. This approach generates an array of photonic jets by the collimated illumination of self-assembled microspheres. The photonic jets can be precisely steered within the unit cell defined by each microsphere by changing the angle of incidence. This allows for the creation of complex metasurface element geometries. Computer controlled articulation of the substrate relative to a static UV source allows the direct-write of different metasurface elements. However, this is time-consuming and requires registration between each exposure for complex features. This paper investigates a single exposure method with the dynamic continuous angle of incidence control provided by a Digital Micromirror Device (DMD) in the front Fourier plane of the projection system. The grayscale values of the DMD pixels can be adjusted to provide optical proximity correction. Larger patterns can be achieved by scanning the substrate relative to the exposure beam. This approach is demonstrated with the creation of hierarchical patterns. This work greatly simplifies the MPL exposure process for complex resonators and provides potential for full light field control.

Programmable topological metasurface to modulate spatial and surface waves in real time

Abstract We propose a programmable topological metasurface to integrate intelligent modulations of spatial and surface waves. A general design method is presented to design the programmable metasurface elements with PIN diodes. The surface waves can be controlled to propagate along the topological domain-wall interface by programming the C3-symmetry elements, while the spatial waves are modulated by the patterns of C6-symmetry elements. By independently controlling the bias voltages of meta-elements, the programmable topological metasurface can generate different coding patterns with distinct combinations of C3- and C6-symmetries in real time, respectively achieving the dynamical manipulation of the surface- and spatial-wave by using distinct element states in a time-division manner. To validate the modulation performance, we perform both near- and far-field tests with different coding patterns. Experimental results demonstrate good agreement with numerical simulations, thereby showcasing the flexible manipulations of surface waves and spatial waves by the topological metasurface. The proposed metasurface opens up new possibilities for multifunctional metadevices, which hold great potentials for future wireless communications and smart sensing systems.

Ultra-low radar cross-section realized by metasurface with nonuniform elements

A novel checkerboard metasurface is proposed to realize broadband ultra-low radar cross-section reduction (RCSR). The metasurface element is a non-uniform array which contains two uniform subarrays composed of 3 × 6 metallic patches. The reflection phases of the two subarrays can be compensated each other. Based on this characteristic, the non-uniform element reflects two orthogonally polarized waves with a phase difference shrinking to 180 ± 20° in a wideband from 11.2 to 23.0 GHz. When the non-uniform elements are arranged into a checkerboard structure, two co-polarized reflective waves with phase difference of 180 ± 20° are then generated for arbitrary polarized incident waves, resulting in an ultra-low RCS reduction. Simulation results show that the proposed checkerboard metasurface achieves at least 15 dB RCS reduction from 11.2 to 23 GHz (69%) for normal incident waves. The experimental results are good agreement with the simulations.

Single-shot wide-field full-stokes polarization imaging

Polarization is an intrinsic property of light. With the advancements in nanophotonics, it is now possible to achieve arbitrary polarization transformations in space. Incorporating special functions in different spatial dimensions expands the design freedom of metasurfaces and other optical devices. To understand and utilize the metasurface, we design a metasurface optical element to achieve single-shot, wide-field polarization imaging. Our demonstration exhibits a compact, full Stokes wide-field polarization imaging device without requiring conventional optical elements, such as moving parts or wide-field lens sets. Wide-field polarization imaging devices are potential candidates for machine vision and biological tissue imaging applications.

Scattered beam control of encoded metasurface based on near-field coupling effects of elements

The coupling effect between the element structures of the traditional Huygens metasurface is easy to cause the efficiency of the designed functional devices to be reduced. In order to eliminate or reduce the coupling effect between the element structures, a border-type Huygens metasurface element structure is proposed. In order to confirm that the bounding element structure can significantly reduce the coupling effect, the near-field distribution and far-field properties of two Huygens metasurfaces with and without bounding are compared. Through comparative analysis, we find that the bounding Huygens element structure can significantly reduce the coupling effect between the element structures, and the far-field scattering angle is more consistent with the theoretical calculation value. In order to realize the free regulation of the far-field scattering angle of THz waves, we introduce the Fourier convolution principle in digital signal processing, and operate the element sequence of Huygens metasurface on the addition principle to realize the free regulation of scattered beams. In addition, we performed functional addition operations on the bounding and unbounding coding sequences. The bounding code structure can accurately achieve the synthesis of functions.

Research and design of a metasurface with an extended depth of focus in the near field.

A metasurface with an extended depth of focus has broad application prospects in security detection. However, in the near field, the simulation results obtained by using traditional methods to achieve an extended depth of focus have a significant deviation from the preset value. This paper discusses the relationship between the depth of focus and focusing position, and the reason why the simulation results deviate from the preset focus position in the radial modulation method. The angle modulation method is found by a simulation. A more accurate method for an extended depth of focus was proposed by combining the radial modulation method with the quasi-optical path principle. Finally, a polarization-insensitive reflective metasurface element was designed, and elements were arranged to form a polarization-insensitive focus between 150 and 400mm based on the focusing effect settings. The simulation results indicate that the metasurface achieves the same focusing effect between 175 and 425mm when different linear-polarization waves are incident. This focus is greater and more accurate than the radial modulation method under the same conditions, which indicates that the method is superior to the radial modulation method in the near-field region. The simulation verifies the accuracy of the method and shows potential application prospects in fields such as microwave imaging.

Near-field imaging and spectroscopy of terahertz resonators and metasurfaces [Invited

Terahertz (THz) metasurfaces have become a key platform for engineering light-matter interaction at THz frequencies. They have evolved from simple metallic resonator arrays into tunable and programmable devices, displaying ultrafast modulation rates and incorporating emerging quantum materials. The electrodynamics which govern metasurface operation can only be directly revealed at the scale of subwavelength individual metasurface elements, through sampling their evanescent fields. It requires near-field spectroscopy and imaging techniques to overcome the diffraction limit and provide spatial resolution down to the nanoscale. Through a series of case studies, this review provides an in-depth overview of recently developed THz near-field microscopy capabilities for research on metamaterials.

Two-dimensional terahertz beam manipulations based on liquid-crystal-assisted programmable metasurface

In this paper, an approach is proposed toward two-dimensional (2D) beam tailoring in the terahertz band based on programmable metasurface loaded with liquid crystals. Specifically, a 1-bit reflective metasurface element is designed with switchable phase responses, and subsequently, an individually controllable metasurface array in 2D fashion is achieved by pixelating the metallic reflection back plate. As typical examples, programmable metasurfaces operating around 94 and 220 GHz are developed, respectively, and both simulation and experimental results confirm the powerful abilities of the metasurfaces in 2D wide-angle beam manipulations. In addition, the proposed method has advantages of wide frequency range, low cost, and high reliability, implying significant application prospects in terahertz reconfigurable intelligent surfaces and holographic imaging.

Detecting Angle of Arrival on a Hybrid RIS Using Intensity-Only Data

Reconfigurable reflective metasurfaces—or reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs)—can redirect incident signals toward desired directions, an ability that allows for sculpting wireless communication channels with desired characteristics. This smart radio environment, however, necessitates the information about the transmitter(s) and the receiver(s) to be available at the RIS. One possible solution to this need is to add sensing capability to the RIS. However, sensing complex wireless signals (i.e. both amplitude and phase) often requires complicated setups. In this paper, we propose and numerically demonstrate a reconfigurable reflective metasurface that uses intensity-only samples of the incident signal to retrieve desired information about the propagation environment. To do that, we will randomly tune the metasurface elements to multiplex information incident on all of them. The phaseless multiplexed data is then processed using computational ghost imaging algorithm to retrieve the desired information. As a demonstrative example, we present the detection of the incident angle from a user in a free-space environment. This simplified sensing process can pave the way for incorporation of RISs with integrated sensing capabilities in future wireless communication or sensing systems.