Junxiao Zhou

Generation of Airy vortex and Airy vector beams based on the modulation of dynamic and geometric phases

We propose a novel method for the generation of Airy vortex and Airy vector beams based on the modulation of dynamic and geometric phases. In our scheme, the Airy beam is generated by the dynamic phase with a spatial light modulator, and the vortex phase or the vector polarization is modulated by the geometric phase with a dielectric metasurface. The modulation of the geometric phase provides an extra degree of freedom to manipulate the phase and the polarization of Airy beams. This scheme can be extended to generate any other types of optical beams with desirable phase and polarization.

Generation of perfect vortex and vector beams based on Pancharatnam-Berry phase elements

Perfect vortex beams are the orbital angular momentum (OAM)-carrying beams with fixed annular intensities, which provide a better source of OAM than traditional Laguerre-Gaussian beams. However, ordinary schemes to obtain the perfect vortex beams are usually bulky and unstable. We demonstrate here a novel generation scheme by designing planar Pancharatnam-Berry (PB) phase elements to replace all the elements required. Different from the conventional approaches based on reflective or refractive elements, PB phase elements can dramatically reduce the occupying volume of system. Moreover, the PB phase element scheme is easily developed to produce the perfect vector beams. Therefore, our scheme may provide prominent vortex and vector sources for integrated optical communication and micromanipulation systems.

Realization of spin-dependent splitting with arbitrary intensity patterns based on all-dielectric metasurfaces

We report the realization of spin-dependent splitting with arbitrary intensity patterns based on all-dielectric metasurfaces. Compared with the plasmonic metasurfaces, the all-dielectric metasurface exhibits more high transmission efficiency and conversion efficiency, which makes it possible to achieve the spin-dependent splitting with arbitrary intensity patterns. Our findings suggest a way for generation and manipulation of spin photons, and thereby offer the possibility of developing spin-based nanophotonic applications.

Spin-dependent manipulating of vector beams by tailoring polarization.

We examine the spin-dependent manipulating of vector beams by tailoring the inhomogeneous polarization. The spin-dependent manipulating is attributed to the spin-dependent phase gradient in vector beams, which can be regarded as the intrinsic feature of inhomogeneous polarization. The desired polarization can be obtained by establishing the relationship between the local orientation of polarization and the local orientation of the optical axis of waveplate. We demonstrate that the spin-dependent manipulating with arbitrary intensity patterns can be achieved by tailoring the inhomogeneous polarization.

Optical integration of Pancharatnam-Berry phase lens and dynamical phase lens

In the optical system, most elements such as lens, prism, and optical fiber are made of silica glass. Therefore, integrating Pancharatnam-Berry phase elements into silica glass has potential applications in the optical system. In this paper, we take a lens, for example, which integrates a Pancharatnam-Berry phase lens into a conventional plano-convex lens. The spin states and positions of focal points can be modulated by controlling the polarization states of the incident beam. The proposed lens has a high transmission efficiency, and thereby acts as a simple and powerful tool to manipulate spin photons. Furthermore, the method can be conveniently extended to the optical fiber and laser cavity, and may provide a route to the design of the spin-photonic devices.

Higher-order laser mode converters with dielectric metasurfaces.

A simple and compact converter based on the dielectric metasurface is proposed for the transformation of Gaussian mode to Hermite-Gaussian and Laguerre-Gaussian modes. We establish the relationship between the phase of a desired mode and the local orientation of the optical axis based on the evolution of Pancharatnam-Berry phase on Poincaré sphere. By controlling the local orientation of the optical axis in the dielectric metasurface, we can achieve any desired higher-order laser mode.

Photonic spin filter with dielectric metasurfaces.

We propose a photonic spin filter whose structure is similar to that of conventional spatial filter, but the two plano-convex lenses are replaced by Pancharatnam-Berry phase ones. The dielectric metasurface with high transmission and conversion efficiency is designed to work as Pancharatnam-Berry phase lens. The photonic spin filter can sort desired spin photons from the input beam with mixed spin states, and thereby facilitate possible applications in spin-based photonics.

Measurements of Pancharatnam–Berry phase in mode transformations on hybrid-order Poincaré sphere

We report direct measurements of the Pancharatnam-Berry (PB) phase in mode transformations on a hybrid-order Poincaré sphere. This geometric phase arises when the vector vortex states undergo a cyclic transformation over a closed circuit on a hybrid-order Poincaré sphere. The measured PB phase is proportional to the solid angle of the closed circuit, as well as to the variation of the total angular momenta between north and south poles. More importantly, a zero PB phase has been demonstrated, despite the vector vortex states taken through a closed circuit on the hybrid-order Poincaré sphere. This interesting phenomenon can be explained as being due to the zero Berry curvature.

Geometric phase Doppler effect: when structured light meets rotating structured materials

We examine the geometric phase Doppler effect that appears when a structured light interacts with a rotating structured material. In our scheme the structured light possesses a vortex phase and the structured material works as an inhomogeneous anisotropic plate. We show that the Doppler effect manifests itself as a frequency shift which can be interpreted in terms of a dynamic evolution of Pancharatnam-Berry phase on the hybrid-order Poincaré sphere. The frequency shift induced by the change rate of Pancharatnam-Berry phase with time is derived from both the Jones matrix calculations and the theory of the hybrid-order Poincaré sphere. Unlike the conventional rotational Doppler effect, the frequency shift is proportional to the variation of total angular momentum of light beam, irrespective of the orbital angular momentum of input beams.

Compact photonic spin filters

In this letter, we propose and experimentally demonstrate a compact photonic spin filter formed by integrating a Pancharatnam-Berry phase lens (focal length of ±f) into a conventional plano-concave lens (focal length of −f). By choosing the input port of the filter, photons with a desired spin state, such as the right-handed component or the left-handed one, propagate alone its original propagation direction, while the unwanted spin component is quickly diverged after passing through the filter. One application of the filter, sorting the spin-dependent components of vector vortex beams on higher-order Poincare sphere, is also demonstrated. Our scheme provides a simple method to manipulate light, and thereby enables potential applications for photonic devices.