Chiral emission from resonant metasurfaces

Ultracompact sources of circularly polarized light are important for classical and quantum optical information processing. Conventional approaches for generating chiral emission are restricted to excitation power ranges and fail to provide high-quality radiation with perfect polarization conversion. We used the physics of chiral quasi-bound states in the continuum to demonstrate the efficient and controllable emission of circularly polarized light from resonant metasurfaces. Exploiting intrinsic chirality and giant field enhancement, we revealed how to simultaneously modify and control spectra, radiation patterns, and spin angular momentum of photoluminescence and lasing without any spin injection. The superior characteristics of chiral emission and lasing promise multiple applications in nanophotonics and quantum optics.

Automated summary

Ultracompact sources of circularly polarized light are important for both classical and quantum optical information processing. The efficient and controllable emission of circularly polarized light from resonant metasurfaces using the physics of chiral quasi-bound states in the continuum has been demonstrated, promising multiple applications in nanophotonics and quantum optics.