Metasurfaces have enabled a plethora of emerging functions within an ultrathin dimension, paving way towards flat and highly integrated photonic devices. Despite the rapid progress in this area, simultaneous realization of reconfigurability, high efficiency, and full control over the phase and amplitude of scattered light is posing a great challenge. Here, we try to tackle this challenge by introducing the concept of a reprogrammable hologram based on 1-bit coding metasurfaces. The state of each unit cell of the coding metasurface can be switched between ‘1’ and ‘0’ by electrically controlling the loaded diodes. Our proof-of-concept experiments show that multiple desired holographic images can be realized in real time with only a single coding metasurface. The proposed reprogrammable hologram may be a key in enabling future intelligent devices with reconfigurable and programmable functionalities that may lead to advances in a variety of applications such as microscopy, display, security, data storage, and information processing.

The programmable and digital metamaterials or metasurfaces presented recently have huge potentials in designing real-time-controlled electromagnetic devices. Here, we propose the first transmission-type 2-bit programmable coding metasurface for single-sensor and single- frequency imaging in the microwave frequency. Compared with the existing single-sensor imagers composed of active spatial modulators with their units controlled independently, we introduce randomly programmable metasurface to transform the masks of modulators, in which their rows and columns are controlled simultaneously so that the complexity and cost of the imaging system can be reduced drastically. Different from the single-sensor approach using the frequency agility, the proposed imaging system makes use of variable modulators under single frequency, which can avoid the object dispersion. In order to realize the transmission-type 2-bit programmable metasurface, we propose a two-layer binary coding unit, which is convenient for changing the voltages in rows and columns to switch the diodes in the top and bottom layers, respectively. In our imaging measurements, we generate the random codes by computer to achieve different transmission patterns, which can support enough multiple modes to solve the inverse-scattering problem in the single-sensor imaging. Simple experimental results are presented in the microwave frequency, validating our new single-sensor and single-frequency imaging system.

We propose a method to control electromagnetic (EM) radiations by holographic metasurfaces, including to producing multi-beam scanning in one dimension (1D) and two dimensions (2D) with the change of frequency. The metasurfaces are composed of subwavelength metallic patches on grounded dielectric substrate. We present a combined theory of holography and leaky wave to realize the multi-beam radiations by exciting the surface interference patterns, which are generated by interference between the excitation source and required radiation waves. As the frequency changes, we show that the main lobes of EM radiation beams could accomplish 1D or 2D scans regularly by using the proposed holographic metasurfaces shaped with different interference patterns. This is the first time to realize 2D scans of antennas by changing the frequency. Full-wave simulations and experimental results validate the proposed theory and confirm the corresponding physical phenomena.

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Electromagnetic (EM) waves have been widely applied in wireless communications, radar detection, navigation, and target recognition. Radiation and scattering are two common behaviors in the EM community, but it remains a long‐standing challenge to control them in a dynamical way, especially using a single, low‐cost, and compact hardware. Here, a promising solution is proposed by combining a programmable metasurface with a radiation array, which can manipulate the scattering properties, digitally and in real‐time, and exhibit different radiation modes simultaneously. More advantageous over previous investigations with the fixed radiation‐scattering performance, a field‐programmable gate array is introduced to extend, realize, and verify the multiple functions of the meta‐microstructure (MMS). As a proof‐of‐concept, multiple functions, including polarization conversion, scattering beam manipulation, diffusion scattering, radar cross‐section reduction, EM waves radiation, and vortex beam generation, have been adequately demonstrated by the MMS prototype.

We propose to use backward radiations of leaky waves supported by a holographic metasurface to produce spatial Bessel beams in the microwave frequency regime. The holographic metasurface consists of a grounded dielectric slab and a series of metal patches. By changing the size of metal patches, the surface-impedance distribution of the holographic metasurface can be modulated, and hence the radiation properties of the leaky waves can be designed to realize Bessel beams. Both numerical simulations and experiments verify the features of spatial Bessel beams, which may be useful in imaging applications or wireless power transmissions with the dynamic focal-depth controls.

A thin metasurface has shown powerful capabilities in controlling either incident electromagnetic (EM) waves or radiation waves, but is difficult for both. Here, a self-feeding Janus metasurface (SFJ-MS) is proposed to manipulate the incident EM waves and emit the radiated waves simultaneously, which can realize the polarization conversion of incident waves, scattering control, EM wave radiation, and radiation-beam steering. On the upper of SFJ-MS, a diagonal-split square ring and a rectangular patch with rotation for radiation are designed to introduce anisotropy in the meta-atom for converting the polarization of incident EM waves. On the bottom of SFJ-MS, a self-feeding microstructure converts the alternating current into the excitation of SFJ-MS to emit the EM waves to free space. The multiple functions of SFJ-MS are comprehensively substantiated by measured results, which are in agreements with the stringent simulations. This SFJ-MS, with lightweight, compact, low profile, and power-efficient features, can find potential applications in phased array radar systems, wireless communication systems, polarimetric radar imaging systems, and target detection systems.

The dual‐functional and/or multifunctional devices have huge fascinations and prospects to conveniently integrate complex systems with low costs. However, most of such devices are based on anisotropic media or anisotropic structures. Here, a new method is proposed to design planar dual‐functional devices using an isotropic holographic metasurface, in which two different functions are written on the same holographic interference pattern with no mutual coupling. When the metasurface is excited by two orthogonally ported sources, the corresponding dual functions can be controlled by the object waves, which are not affected by each other due to suppression of mutual interference. The proposed metasurface is composed of subwavelength‐scale isotropic metallic patches on a grounded dielectric. In this specific design, double‐beam and double‐polarization radiate devices are realized independently by the orthogonal excitations. Based on the theoretical analysis, scanning radiate beams that are only controlled by frequency with different performances under orthogonal polarizations are demonstrated. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first time for actualizing dual‐functional devices using isotropic textures. Full‐wave simulations and experimental results in the microwave frequencies are presented to validate the proposed theory and confirm the corresponding physical phenomena.