Terahertz circular dichroism spectroscopy of biomaterials enabled by kirigami polarization modulators

Terahertz circular dichroism (TCD) offers multifaceted spectroscopic capabilities for understanding the mesoscale chiral architecture and low-energy vibrations of macromolecules in (bio)materials^1-5. However, the lack of dynamic polarization modulators comparable to polarization optics for other parts of the electromagnetic spectrum is impeding the proliferation of TCD spectroscopy^6-11. Here we show that tunable optical elements fabricated from patterned plasmonic sheets with periodic kirigami cuts make possible the polarization modulation of terahertz radiation under application of mechanical strain. A herringbone pattern of microscale metal stripes enables a dynamic range of polarization rotation modulation exceeding 80° over thousands of cycles. Following out-of-plane buckling, the plasmonic stripes function as reconfigurable semi-helices of variable pitch aligned along the terahertz propagation direction. Several biomaterials, exemplified by an elytron of the Chrysina gloriosa, revealed distinct TCD fingerprints associated with the helical substructure in the biocomposite. Analogous kirigami modulators will also enable other applications in terahertz optics, such as polarization-based terahertz imaging, line-of-sight telecommunication, information encryption and space exploration.