Dissemin is shutting down on January 1st, 2025

Published in

Nature Research, Nature Communications, 1(7), 2016

DOI: 10.1038/ncomms11618

Links

Tools

Export citation

Search in Google Scholar

Decoupling optical function and geometrical form using conformal flexible dielectric metasurfaces

This paper is made freely available by the publisher.
This paper is made freely available by the publisher.

Full text: Download

Green circle
Preprint: archiving allowed
Red circle
Postprint: archiving forbidden
Green circle
Published version: archiving allowed
Data provided by SHERPA/RoMEO

Abstract

Physical geometry and optical properties of objects are correlated: cylinders focus light to a line, spheres to a point, and arbitrarily shaped objects introduce optical aberrations. Multi-functional components with decoupled geometrical form and optical function are needed when specific optical functionalities must be provided while the shapes are dictated by other considerations like ergonomics, aerodynamics, or esthetics. Here we demonstrate an approach for decoupling optical properties of objects from their physical shape using thin and flexible dielectric metasurfaces which conform to objects' surface and change their optical properties. The conformal metasurfaces are composed of silicon nano-posts embedded in a polymer substrate that locally modify near-infrared ($\it{\lambda}$ = 915 nm) optical wavefronts. As proof of concept, we show that cylindrical lenses covered with metasurfaces can be transformed to function as aspherical lenses focusing light to a point. The conformal metasurface concept is highly versatile for developing arbitrarily shaped multi-functional optical devices.