Full Stokes imaging polarimetry using dielectric metasurfaces

Abstract

Polarization is a degree of freedom of light carrying important information that is usually absent in intensity and spectral content. Imaging polarimetry is the process of determining the polarization state of light, either partially or fully, over an extended scene. It has found several applications in various fields, from remote sensing to biology. Among different devices for imaging polarimetry, division of focal plane polarization cameras (DoFP-PCs) are more compact, less complicated, and less expensive. In general, DoFP-PCs are based on an array of polarization filters in the focal plane. Here we demonstrate a new principle and design for DoFP-PCs based on dielectric metasurfaces with the ability to control polarization and phase. Instead of polarization filtering, the method is based on splitting and focusing light in three different polarization bases. Therefore, it enables full Stokes characterization of the state of polarization and overcomes the 50% theoretical efficiency limit of the polarization-filter-based DoFP-PCs.