Reconfigurable flat optics

本研究的目的是开发一种新型的可重构平面光学元件，能够动态地将光学波前塑造成具有亚波长分辨率和快速的任意形状。它侧重于技术上重要的中红外光谱范围（波长2-30？该公司在解决安全、健康和环境方面的一系列重要问题方面具有独特的地位。该方法是使用诸如石墨烯的活性介质，其在中红外线中具有可调的光学电导率，以转移等离子体天线的共振，从而导致散射光的振幅和相位的大的且可控的变化。平面光学元件将通过组装可调谐等离子体天线阵列来制造。这项研究的智力价值在于它解决了光学调制的基本问题：在给定一定的材料扰动的情况下，如何获得光的振幅和相位的可观且可调谐的变化。该计划更广泛的影响在于教育，推广和中红外技术的影响。该计划通过实验室培训和研究为各级学生提供设备设计，建模，制造和表征方面的独特教育机会。该计划还将促进科学家和艺术家之间的合作，为公众更容易获得的科学发现制作艺术插图。该计划中开发的设备原型将有很大的希望用于各种应用，如中红外光测距和检测，自由空间通信，安全筛选和生物医学成像。

The objective of this research is to develop a new class of reconfigurable flat optical components that are able to dynamically mold optical wavefronts into arbitrary shapes with subwavelength resolution and fast speed. It focuses on the technologically important mid-infrared spectral range (wavelength 2-30?Ým), which is uniquely positioned to solve a number of important issues in security, health, and environment. The approach is to use active medium such as graphene, which has tunable optical conductivity in the mid-infrared, to shift the resonance of plasmonic antennas, leading to large and controllable changes to the amplitude and phase of the scattered light. Flat optical components will be created by assembling arrays of tunable plasmonic antennas.The intellectual merit of this research is that it addresses the fundamental problem of optical modulation: how to obtain considerable and tunable changes to the amplitude and phase of light, given a certain material perturbation. The broader impacts of this program lie in education, outreach, and implication for mid-infrared technology. The program provides unique educational opportunities in device design, modeling, fabrication and characterization for students of all levels through lab training and research. The program will also promote a collaborative effort between scientists and artists in producing artistic illustrations of scientific discoveries that are more accessible to the general public. The device prototypes developed in this program will have great promise for a variety of applications, such as mid-infrared light ranging and detection, free-space communication, security screening, and biomedical imaging.