Multifunctional volumetric meta-optics for color and polarization image sensors

Abstract

Three-dimensional elements, with refractive index distribution structured at subwavelength scale, provide an expansive optical design space that can be harnessed for demonstrating multifunctional free-space optical devices. Here we present 3D dielectric elements, designed to be placed on top of the pixels of image sensors, that sort and focus light based on its color and polarization with efficiency significantly surpassing 2D absorptive and diffractive filters. The devices are designed via iterative gradient-based optimization to account for multiple target functions while ensuring compatibility with existing nanofabrication processes, and they are experimentally validated using a scaled device that operates at microwave frequencies. This approach combines arbitrary functions into a single compact element, even where there is no known equivalent in bulk optics, enabling novel integrated photonic applications.

Document Details

Document Type
Pub Defense Publication
Publication Date
Mar 31, 2020
Source ID
10.1364/optica.384228

Entities

People

  • Andrei Faraon
  • Conner Ballew
  • Gregory Roberts
  • Philip Camayd-Muñoz

Organizations

  • Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency
  • National Institutes of Health

Tags

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Distributed Systems and Data Platform Development
  • Optical Physics and Photonics.
  • Systems Analysis and Design

Technology Areas

  • Space