Advances in vectorial polarization-resolved imaging are bringing new capabilities to applications ranging from fundamental physics through to clinical diagnosis. Imaging polarimetry requires determination of the Mueller matrix (MM) at every point, providing a complete description of an object's vectorial properties. Despite forming a comprehensive representation, the MM does not usually provide easily interpretable information about the object's internal structure. Certain simpler vectorial metrics are derived from subsets of the MM elements. These metrics permit extraction of signatures that provide direct indicators of hidden optical properties of complex systems, while featuring an intriguing asymmetry about what information can or cannot be inferred via these metrics. We harness such characteristics to reveal the spin Hall effect of light, infer microscopic structure within laser-written photonic waveguides, and conduct rapid pathological diagnosis through analysis of healthy and cancerous tissue. This provides new insight for the broader usage of such asymmetric inferred vectorial information.
Structuring light attracts continuous research effort due to its impactful applications in optical information and communications, laser material processing, optical imaging, or optical manipulation of matter. In particular, femtosecond laser direct writing of photoresists is a technology dedicated to the creation of optically isotropic free-form 3D micro-optical elements with size, spatial resolution, and surface quality that qualify to demanding integrated optics needs. Here, we report on the design, production, and characterization of dielectric metasurface birefringent optical retarders made from femtosecond laser 3D printing technology whose polarization conversion efficiency is more than 10 times larger than that previously reported Wang et al., Appl. Phys. Lett. 110, 181101 (2017)]. As the flexibility of the fabrication process allows considering arbitrary orientation of the artificially engineered optical axis, these results open up for 3D printed geometric phase optical elements.
Laser exposure defines voxel's dimensions as essential building blocks in direct write 3D nanolithography. However, the exposure conditions not only influence the size of the produced features but also their optical properties. This empowers the realization of an adjustable refractive index out of single material by varying the writing strategy while preserving laser 3D nanolithography's flexibility in geometry and high resolution. Here, the refractive index for the 450-1600 nm spectral range of the micro-optics out of SZ2080 hybrid polymer is systematically studied by applying ray and wave optics approaches followed by optical resolution analysis. It reveals the exact value of the laser-printed components instead of the determination assessed by other techniques measuring thin films or bulky volumes of the investigated substance. The studied micro-lenses are of below 100 μm in dimensions and a clear distinction in their performance on low and high exposure doses is found by analyzing it in all different approaches and validating using different lithography setups. Findings reveal the complexity of the refractive index of the 3D micro-optics which is influenced by the material density and morphology. A route for freedom in 3D printing shape and refractive index can be realized by the technological optimization of delicate exposure control in ultrafast laser nanolithography.
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