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Chiral orbital lasing in a twisted bilayer metasurface
Mingjin Wang1,2,3,4, Nianyuan Lv5, Zixuan Zhang5
1Laboratory of Solid State Optoelectronics Information Technology, Institute of Semiconductors, CAS, Beijing, China.
Nature Communications
|March 13, 2026
Summary
Researchers achieved orbital chiral lasing in a twisted bilayer photonic structure. This novel chiral light source, utilizing Moiré metasurfaces, opens new avenues for optical applications.
Area of Science:
- Photonics
- Quantum Physics
- Nonlinear Optics
Background:
- Chirality is crucial in physics, influencing nonlinear optics, quantum physics, and topological photonics.
- Photons exhibit intrinsic chirality with spin angular momentum, and orbital angular momentum can induce chirality in chiral structures.
Purpose of the Study:
- To observe and characterize orbital chiral lasing from a structurally chiral twisted bilayer photonic system.
- To leverage Moiré-type optical structures for novel chiral light generation.
Main Methods:
- Design and fabrication of a Moiré-type optical structure using two semiconductor membrane metasurfaces.
- Optical pumping of the twisted bilayer to achieve lasing.
- Polarization-resolved imaging and self-interference measurements to confirm chiral orbital characteristics.
Main Results:
- Achieved single-mode lasing over a broad spectral range of 250 nm.
- Observed chiral orbital lasing emission attributed to helical and non-Hermitian couplings.
- Demonstrated the chiral nature of the lasing emission through advanced optical measurements.
Conclusions:
- The study successfully demonstrates orbital chiral lasing from a twisted photonic structure.
- This work provides a new platform for generating chiral light with potential applications in diagnostics, optical manipulation, and optical communication.
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