Coherent control of birefringence and optical activity

Control of polarization of light with light is demonstrated in thin slabs of linear material promising ultrafast all-optical data processing at arbitrarily low intensities. In proof-of-principle experiments we access any polarization azimuth and any ellipticity

Coherent control of Snell's law at metasurfaces

It was recently demonstrated that the well-known Snell's law must be corrected for phase gradient metasurfaces to account for their spatially varying phase, leading to normal and anomalous transmission and reflection of light on such metasurfaces. Here we show that the efficiency of normal and anomalous transmission and reflection of light can be controlled by the intensity or phase of a second coherent wave. The phenomenon is illustrated using gradient metasurfaces based on V-shaped and rectangular apertures in a metal film. This coherent control effect can be exploited for wave front shaping and signal routing

Coherent control of light interaction with graphene

We report the experimental observation of all-optical modulation of light in a graphene film. The graphene film is scanned across a standing wave formed by two counter-propagating laser beams in a Sagnac interferometer. Through a coherent absorption process the on-axis transmission is modulated with close to 80% efficiency. Furthermore we observe modulation of the scattered energy by mapping the off-axis scattered optical signal: scattering is minimized at a node of the standing wave pattern and maximized at an antinode. The results highlight the possibility to switch and modulate any given optical interaction with deeply sub-wavelength films.Comment: 4 pages, 4 figure

Coherent control of Snell's law

We demonstrate coherent control of the generalized Snell's law in ultrathin gradient metasurfaces constructed by an array of V-shaped slot nanoantennas

Resonant enhancement of second harmonic generation in the mid-infrared using localized surface phonon polaritons in sub-diffractional nanostructures

We report on strong enhancement of mid-infrared second harmonic generation (SHG) from SiC nanopillars due to the resonant excitation of localized surface phonon-polaritons within the Reststrahlen band. The magnitude of the SHG peak at the monopole mode experiences a strong dependence on the resonant frequency beyond that described by the field localization degree and the dispersion of linear and nonlinear-optical SiC properties. Comparing the results for the identical nanostructures made of 4H and 6H SiC polytypes, we demonstrate the interplay of localized surface phonon polaritons with zone-folded weak phonon modes of the anisotropic crystal. Tuning the monopole mode in and out of the region where the zone-folded phonon is excited in 6H-SiC, we observe a prominent increase of the already monopole-enhanced SHG output when the two modes are coupled. Envisioning this interplay as one of the showcase features of mid-infrared nonlinear nanophononics, we discuss its prospects for the effective engineering of nonlinear-optical materials with desired properties in the infrared spectral range.Comment: 16 pages, 3 figure

Metamaterials with magnetism and chirality

This review introduces and overviews electromagnetism in structured metamaterials which undergo simultaneous time-reversal and space-inversion symmetry breaking due to magnetism and chirality. Direct experimental observation of optical magnetochiral effects in a single metamolecule with magnetism and chirality is demonstrated at microwave frequencies. Numerical simulations based on a finite element method reproduce the experimental results well, and predict the emergence of giant magnetochiral effects, by combining resonances in the metamolecule. Toward the realization of magnetochiral effects at higher frequencies than microwaves, a metamolecule is miniaturized in the presence of ferromagnetic resonance in a cavity and coplanar waveguide. This work opens the door to the realization of a one-way mirror and synthetic gauge fields for electromagnetic waves