Engineering of the Fano resonance spectral response with non-Hermitian metasurfaces by navigating between exceptional point and bound states in the continuum conditions.

We address the engineering of Fano resonances and metasurfaces, by placing it in the general context of open non-Hermitian systems composed of coupled antenna-type resonators. We show that eigenfrequency solutions obtained for a particular case of scattering matrix are general and valid for arbitrary antenna radiative rates, thanks to an appropriate transformation of parametric space by simple linear expansion and rotation. We provide evidence that Parity-Time symmetry phase transition path and bound states in continuum (BIC) path represent the natural axis of universal scattering matrix solutions in this parametric coupling-detuning plane and determine the main characteristics of Fano resonance. Specifically, we demonstrate the control of asymmetry and sharpness of Fano resonance through navigation between BIC and PT-symmetric phase transition exceptional point. In particular, we demonstrate a fully symmetric Fano resonance in a system of two coupled bright and dark mode resonators. This result goes beyond current wisdom on this topic and demonstrates the universality of scattering matrix eigenfrequency solutions highlighted in our study. The validity of our approach is corroborated through comparison with experimental and full 3D numerical simulations results published in the literature making it thus possible to grasp a large body of experimental work carried out in this field. The detrimental impact of absorption losses on the contrast of the Fano resonance, which must be two orders of magnitude lower than the radiative losses, is also evidenced.

2D Waveguided Bessel Beam Generated Using Integrated Metasurface-Based Plasmonic Axicon.

Near-field imaging of the propagation of a diffraction-free Bessel-type beam in a guided wave configuration generated by means of a metasurface-based axicon lens integrated on a silicon waveguide is reported. The operation of the axicon lens with a footprint as small as 11 µm2 is based on local engineering of the effective index of the silicon waveguide with plasmonic nanoresonators. This generic approach, which can be adapted to different types of planar lightwave circuit platforms, offers the possibility to design nano-engineered optical devices based on the use of plasmonic resonators to control light at the nanoscale.

Electronically-engineered metasurface for directional beaming of electromagnetic waves through a subwavelength aperture.

Controlling diffracted waves has attracted extensive research interests these last years particularly for the potential application of beaming functionality. In this paper, we propose to realize on-axis beaming of diffracted electromagnetic waves by using a phase- gradient metasurface. The structure is optimally designed in order to transform surface waves to propagating waves and to enhance transmission through a subwavelength aperture. Both numerical simulations and near-field measurements are performed at microwave frequencies to validate the proposed concept. Furthermore, the metasurface is frequency-tunable and can be controlled by an external DC bias voltage. Consequently, by adjusting the electromagnetic response of each unit cell through the bias voltage, different phase gradients can be tailored, enabling broadband operation spanning from 9 GHz to 12 GHz.

High-Q Fano resonances via direct excitation of an antisymmetric dark mode.

The engineering of metal-insulator-metal metasurfaces (MSs) displaying sharp spectral features based on Fano-type interference between a symmetric bright mode and an antisymmetric dark mode is reported. The proposed mechanism for direct excitation of antisymmetric mode avoids the necessity of mode hybridization through near-field coupling. Modeling and experimental results bring evidence that such MSs operating in the microwave or terahertz domains provide greater flexibility for Fano resonance engineering and provide strong enhancement of the spectral selectivity factor. It is shown that the occurring Fano resonance interference is related to the broken eigenmode orthogonality in open systems and is independent of hybridization mechanism.

Gradient phase partially reflecting surfaces for beam steering in microwave antennas.

A metal-dielectric-metal gradient phase partially reflecting surface based on the combination of a gradient index dielectric substrate with an inductive and a capacitive grids, is designed at microwave frequencies for antenna applications. The gradient index is obtained by realizing air holes of different dimensions in a dielectric host material. A prototype of the gradient index dielectric substrate is fabricated through three-dimensional printing, an additive fabrication technology. It is then associated to two patterned metallic grids to realize a partially reflecting surface with a gradient phase behavior. For experimental validation, the partially reflective surface is used as reflector in a low-profile Fabry-Perot cavity antenna. An angular enhancement of the emitted beam in a desired direction is reported by further engineering the phase introduced by the inductive and the capacitive grids. Far-field measurements are performed on fabricated antenna prototypes to validate the concept. Such gradient phase reflective surface paves the way to low-cost easy-made microwave metal-dielectric surfaces incorporating functionalities such as beam control, forming and collimation.

Reconfigurable meta-mirror for wavefronts control: applications to microwave antennas.

A planar metasurface composed of electronically tunable meta-atoms incorporating voltage-controlled varactor diodes is proposed as a reconfigurable meta-mirror for wavefronts control in microwave antenna applications. The dispersion responses of the cells are individually tailored in the reconfigurable metasurface so as to overcome the bandwidth limitations of passive metasurfaces and also to control the phase characteristics. By controlling the bias voltage of the varactor diodes on the planar metasurface, the phase characteristics of reflectors can be engineered. The reconfigurable meta-mirror is utilized to implement three different types of reflectors. As such, a reflectarray, a cylindrical parabolic reflector and a dihedral reflector are numerically verified in microwave regime through finite element method. Moreover, experimental measurements are performed on a fabricated prototype to validate the proposed device. Frequency agility, beam deflection and beam focusing are the main functionalities demonstrated from the proposed reconfigurable meta-mirror.

Integrated 2D-Graded Index Plasmonic Lens on a Silicon Waveguide for Operation in the Near Infrared Domain.

In this article we address the nanoscale engineering of the effective index of silicon on insulator waveguides by using plasmonic metasurface resonances to realize a graded index lens. We report the design, implementation, and experimental demonstration of this plasmonic metasurface-based graded index lens integrated on a silicon waveguide for operation in the near-infrared domain. The 2D-graded index lens consists of an array of gold cut wires fabricated on the top of a silicon waveguide. These gold cut wires modify locally the effective index of the silicon waveguide and allow the realization of this gradient lens. The reported solution represents a promising alternative to the bulky or multilayered metamaterials approach in the near IR domain. This enabling technology may have found its place in silicon photonic applications by exploiting the plasmonic resonances to control the light at nanoscale.

Electromagnetic field tapering using all-dielectric gradient index materials.

The concept of transformation optics (TO) is applied to control the flow of electromagnetic fields between two sections of different dimensions through a tapering device. The broadband performance of the field taper is numerically and experimentally validated. The taper device presents a graded permittivity profile and is fabricated through three-dimensional (3D) polyjet printing technology using low-cost all-dielectric materials. Calculated and measured near-field mappings are presented in order to validate the proposed taper. A good qualitative agreement is obtained between full-wave simulations and experimental tests. Such all-dielectric taper paves the way to novel types of microwave devices that can be easily fabricated through low-cost additive manufacturing processes.

Direct dark modes excitation in bi-layered enantiomeric atoms-based metasurface through symmetry matching.

We provide evidence for the mechanism of direct dark mode excitation in a metasurface composed of bi-layered Z-shaped enantiomeric meta-atoms. The electromagnetic behavior of the structure is investigated through both numerical simulations and experimental measurements in the microwave domain. We demonstrate direct field coupling excitation of second higher order electric mode under normal incidence based only on symmetry matching conditions. The proposed approach provides a better flexibility in engineering dark mode resonances that do not rely on hybridization mechanism and presents important advantages for multi-spectral sensor applications.

Coherent beam control with an all-dielectric transformation optics based lens.

Transformation optics (TO) concept well known for its huge possibility in patterning the path of electromagnetic waves is exploited to design a beam steering lens. The broadband directive in-phase emission in a desired off-normal direction from an array of equally fed radiators is numerically and experimentally reported. Such manipulation is achieved without the use of complex and bulky phase shifters as it is the case in classical phased array antennas. The all-dielectric compact low-cost lens prototype presenting a graded permittivity profile is fabricated through three-dimensional (3D) polyjet printing technology. The array of radiators is composed of four planar microstrip antennas realized using standard lithography techniques and is used as excitation source for the lens. To validate the proposed lens, we experimentally demonstrate the broadband focusing properties and in-phase directive emissions deflected from the normal direction. Both the far-field radiation patterns and the near-field distributions are measured and reported. Measurements agree quantitatively and qualitatively with numerical full-wave simulations and confirm the corresponding steering properties. Such experimental validation paves the way to inexpensive easy-made all-dielectric microwave lenses for beam forming and collimation.

Conceptual design of a beam steering lens through transformation electromagnetics.

In this paper, based on transformation electromagnetics, the design procedure of a lens antenna, which steers the radiated beam of a patch array, is presented. Laplace's equation is adopted to construct the mapping between the virtual space and the physical space. The two dimensional (2D) design method can be extended to a potential three-dimensional (3D) realization, and with a proper parameter simplification, the lens can be further realized by common metamaterials or isotropic graded refractive index (GRIN) materials. Full wave simulations are performed to validate the proposed concept. It is observed that by placing the lens on a feeding source, we are able to steer the radiation emitted by the latter source.

Ultrathin pancharatnam-berry metasurface with maximal cross-polarization efficiency.

Novel ultrathin dual-functional metalenses are proposed, fabricated, tested, and verified in the microwave regime for the first time. The significance is that their anomalous transmission efficiency almost reaches the theoretical limit of 25%, showing a remarkable improvement compared with earlier ultrathin metasurface designs with less than 5% coupling efficiency. The planar metalens proposed empowers significant reduction in thickness, versatile focusing behavior, and high transmission efficiency simultaneously.

Experimental verification of isotropic radiation from a coherent dipole source via electric-field-driven LC resonator metamaterials.

It has long been conjectured that isotropic radiation by a simple coherent source is impossible due to changes in polarization. Though hypothetical, the isotropic source is usually taken as the reference for determining a radiator's gain and directivity. Here, we demonstrate both theoretically and experimentally that an isotropic radiator can be made of a simple and finite source surrounded by electric-field-driven LC resonator metamaterials designed by space manipulation. As a proof-of-concept demonstration, we show the first isotropic source with omnidirectional radiation from a dipole source (applicable to all distributed sources), which can open up several possibilities in axion electrodynamics, optical illusion, novel transformation-optic devices, wireless communication, and antenna engineering. Owing to the electric- field-driven LC resonator realization scheme, this principle can be readily applied to higher frequency regimes where magnetism is usually not present.

Reducing physical appearance of electromagnetic sources.

We propose to use the concept of transformation optics for the design of novel radiating devices. By applying transformations that compress space, and then that match it to the surrounding environment, we show how the electromagnetic appearance of radiating elements can be tailored at will. Our efficient approach allows one to realize a large aperture emission from a small aperture one. We describe transformation of the metric space and the calculation of the material parameters. Full wave simulations are performed to validate the proposed approach on different space compression shapes, factors and impedance matching. The idea paves the way to interesting applications in various domains in microwave and optical regimes, but also in acoustics.

Resonant circuit model for efficient metamaterial absorber.

The resonant absorption in a planar metamaterial is studied theoretically. We present a simple physical model describing this phenomenon in terms of equivalent resonant circuit. We discuss the role of radiative and dissipative damping of resonant mode supported by a metamaterial in the formation of absorption spectra. We show that the results of rigorous calculations of Maxwell equations can be fully retrieved with simple model describing the system in terms of equivalent resonant circuit. This simple model allows us to explain the total absorption effect observed in the system on a common physical ground by referring it to the impedance matching condition at the resonance.

Transformation media producing quasi-perfect isotropic emission.

Using the idea of wave manipulation via transformation optics, we propose a way to create a quasi-perfect isotropic emission from a directional one. The manipulation is enabled by composite metamaterials that correspond to a space stretching around the source. It is shown that the directive radiation of a plane source larger than the operating wavelength can be transformed into an isotropic one by modifying the electromagnetic properties of the space around it. A set of parameters allowing practical realization of the proposed device is defined. Numerical simulations using Finite Element Method (FEM) are performed to illustrate the proposed coordinate transformation. This idea, which consists in strongly reducing the apparent size of a radiating source, can find various applications in novel antenna design techniques.

Implementation of PT symmetric devices using plasmonics: principle and applications.

The so-called PT symmetric devices, which feature ε((-x)) = ε((x))* associated with parity-time symmetry, incorporate both gain and loss and can present a singular eigenvalue behaviour around a critical transition point. The scheme, typically based on co-directional coupled waveguides, is here transposed to the case of variable gain on one arm with fixed losses on the other arm. In this configuration, the scheme exploits the full potential of plasmonics by making a beneficial use of their losses to attain a critical regime that makes switching possible with much lowered gain excursions. Practical implementations are discussed based on existing attempts to elaborate coupled waveguide in plasmonics, and based also on the recently proposed hybrid plasmonics waveguide structure with a small low-index gap, the PIROW (Plasmonic Inverse-Rib Optical Waveguide).

Waveguide taper engineering using coordinate transformation technology.

Spatial coordinate transformation is a suitable tool for the design of complex electromagnetic structures. In this paper, we define three spatial coordinate transformations which show the possibility of designing a taper between two different waveguides. A parametric study is presented for the three transformations and we propose achievable values of permittivity and permeability that can be obtained with existing metamaterials. The performances of such defined structures are demonstrated by finite element numerical simulations.

Negative refractive index metamaterials using only metallic cut wires.

We present, design and analyze a novel planar Left-Handed (LH) metamaterial at microwave frequencies. This metamaterial is composed of only metallic cut wires and is used under normal-to-plane incidence. Using Finite Element Method (FEM) based simulations and microwave experiments, we have investigated the material properties of the structure. Simultaneous negative values are observed for the permittivity epsilon and permeability mu by the inversion method from the transmission and reflection responses. A negative index n is verified in a bulk prism engineered by stacking several layers of the metamaterial. Our work demonstrates the feasibility of a LH metamaterial composed of only cut wires.

Engineering resonances in infrared metamaterials.

Engineering resonances in metamaterials has been so far the main way of reaching simultaneously negative permittivity and negative permeability leading to negative index materials. In this paper, we present an experimental and numerical analysis of the infrared response of metamaterials made of continuous nanowires and split ring resonators (SRR) deposited on low-doped silicon when the geometry of the SRRs is gradually altered. The impact of the geometric transformation of the SRRs on the spectra of the composite metamaterial is measured in the 20-200 THz frequency range (i.e., in the 1.5-15 microm wavelength range) for the two field polarizations under normal to plane propagation. We show experimentally and numerically that tuning the SRRs towards elementary cut wires translates in a predictable manner the frequency response of the artificial material. We also analyze coupling effects between the SRRs and the continuous nanowires for different spacings between them. The results of our study are expected to provide useful guidelines for the design of negative index metamaterials on silicon.