Optical metapolarizer device
First Claim
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1. A device for polarizing incident light over a broad bandwidth extending beyond a selected wavelength comprisinga single layer of a transparent dielectric medium;
- anda plurality of separate structures of sub-wavelength conductive elements having dimensions smaller than the selected wavelength and supported on the dielectric medium in an array pattern spaced apart to avoid interference between adjacent structures to form a metamaterial;
whereinthe conductive elements form capacitive and inductive features that exhibit an effective permittivity and an effective permeability in each of the separate structures based on a size and an orientation of the capacitive and inductive features with respect to each other;
the conductive elements are arranged axially within each of the separate structures such that the incident light of a first linear polarity encounters different capacitive and inductive features along a first axis of the device than the incident light of a second linear polarity encounters along a second axis of the device;
the separate structures are arranged in columns parallel to the first axis and a first separation distance between adjacent separate structures within each column along the first axis is substantially smaller than a second separation distance between adjacent columns of the separate structures, and the first separation distance and the second separation distance are each less than the selected wavelength;
the incident light with the first linear polarity encounters a first effective permittivity and a first effective permeability along the first axis in the device which does not significantly affect the incident light with the first linear polarity, whereby the device is transmissive to the incident light with the first linear polarity;
the incident light with the second linear polarity encounters a second effective permittivity along the second axis having an absolute value that is larger than an absolute value of the first effective permittivity encountered by the light with the first linear polarity and an absolute value of a second effective permeability that is different than the absolute value of the first effective permeability encountered by the light with the first linear polarity in the structure; and
an electric field of the incident light of the second linear polarity along the broad bandwidth extending beyond the selected wavelength is phase-shifted, thereby rotationally shifting the second linear polarity to a third linear polarity closer in orientation to the first linear polarity such that the broad bandwidth of the incident light rotated to the third linear polarity is transmitted through the device.
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Abstract
An optical metapolarizer device polarizes light while mitigating the absorptive or reflective losses associated with traditional polarizers. The metapolarizer device transmits light of one polarity and rotates the other polarity so that it is closer to the transmitted polarity. As a result, although the light exiting the metapolarizer device is highly polarized, the total transmissivity of the device can be well in excess of 50%, and can approach 100% in the theoretical limit.
234 Citations
27 Claims
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1. A device for polarizing incident light over a broad bandwidth extending beyond a selected wavelength comprising
a single layer of a transparent dielectric medium; - and
a plurality of separate structures of sub-wavelength conductive elements having dimensions smaller than the selected wavelength and supported on the dielectric medium in an array pattern spaced apart to avoid interference between adjacent structures to form a metamaterial;
whereinthe conductive elements form capacitive and inductive features that exhibit an effective permittivity and an effective permeability in each of the separate structures based on a size and an orientation of the capacitive and inductive features with respect to each other; the conductive elements are arranged axially within each of the separate structures such that the incident light of a first linear polarity encounters different capacitive and inductive features along a first axis of the device than the incident light of a second linear polarity encounters along a second axis of the device; the separate structures are arranged in columns parallel to the first axis and a first separation distance between adjacent separate structures within each column along the first axis is substantially smaller than a second separation distance between adjacent columns of the separate structures, and the first separation distance and the second separation distance are each less than the selected wavelength; the incident light with the first linear polarity encounters a first effective permittivity and a first effective permeability along the first axis in the device which does not significantly affect the incident light with the first linear polarity, whereby the device is transmissive to the incident light with the first linear polarity; the incident light with the second linear polarity encounters a second effective permittivity along the second axis having an absolute value that is larger than an absolute value of the first effective permittivity encountered by the light with the first linear polarity and an absolute value of a second effective permeability that is different than the absolute value of the first effective permeability encountered by the light with the first linear polarity in the structure; and an electric field of the incident light of the second linear polarity along the broad bandwidth extending beyond the selected wavelength is phase-shifted, thereby rotationally shifting the second linear polarity to a third linear polarity closer in orientation to the first linear polarity such that the broad bandwidth of the incident light rotated to the third linear polarity is transmitted through the device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27)
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Specification