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Updated: Jul 31, 2026

Demonstration of Equal-Intensity Beam Generation by Dielectric Metasurfaces
Published on: June 7, 2019
Integrated metasurfaces on silicon photonics for emission shaping and holographic projection
Ping-Yen Hsieh1, Shun-Lin Fang1, Yu-Siang Lin1
1Department of Photonics, College of Electrical and Computer Engineering, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu 30010, Taiwan.
Abstract:
The emerging applications of silicon photonics in free space, such as LiDARs, free-space optical communications, and quantum photonics, urge versatile emission shaping beyond the capabilities of conventional grating couplers. In these applications, silicon photonic chips deliver free-space emission to detect or manipulate external objects. Light needs to emit from a silicon photonic chip to the free space with specific spatial modes, which produce focusing, collimation, orbital angular momentum, or even holographic projection. A platform that offers versatile shaping of free-space emission, while maintaining the CMOS compatibility and monolithic integration of silicon photonics is in pressing need. Here we demonstrate a platform that integrates metasurfaces monolithically on silicon photonic integrated circuits. The metasurfaces consist of amorphous silicon nanopillars evanescently coupled to silicon waveguides. We demonstrate experimentally diffraction-limited beam focusing with a Strehl ratio of 0.82. The focused spot can be switched between two positions by controlling the excitation direction. We also realize a meta-hologram experimentally that projects an image above the silicon photonic chip. This platform can add a highly versatile interface to the existing silicon photonic ecosystems for precise delivery of free-space emission.
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