Electrically tunable metasurface by using InAs in a metal–insulator–metal configuration

Abstract

The ability of modulating optical properties at a lateral subwavelength scale is of crucial importance due to its potential applications for wide-angle holographic displays, optical communications, and interferometric sensors. Here, we present an electrically tunable metasurface whose optical properties can be element-wise controlled at the lateral subwavelength scale in the mid-infrared wavelength regime. Our proposed device facilitates an n-doped InAs layer as a dynamic-tunable layer, and the charge carrier concentration inside the InAs layer is tailored by external gate biases. This InAs active layer is sandwiched between top aluminum strip antennas and a bottom gold substrate, forming the metal–insulator–metal configuration. The change of the charge carrier concentration gives rise to modulation of the amplitude and phase of reflected light in a mid-infrared regime. Numerical investigations show the reflectivity contrast of 44%P with biases of −2.5–0 V and the phase change of 236° with biases of −15 V to +15 V at the wavelength of ∼5 μm. Versatile wavefront shaping such as beam focusing with Fresnel Zone plate and beam steering with saw-tooth phase grating is also provided.

Keywords

• inas
• metasurface
• optical modulator
• surface plasmonics
• wavefront shaping