Metasurfaces: From Lab to Mass Markets

Optical metasurfaces enable unprecedented control over all aspects of light (phase, wavelength, intensity, and polarization) with a single, planar semiconductor layer. Comprised of subwavelength nanostructures, a single metasurface can carry out optical functions typically requiring four or more conventional refractive and/or diffractive optics, bringing new forms of sensing to mobile form factor for the first time. In addition to the expanded functionality they provide, they also open a route to the manufacture of optical devices in the semiconductor foundry, because they are constructed from CMOS-compatible materials on a planar substrate. This presentation will discuss metasurfaces from fundamental concepts to commercialization and will explore how the performance and large-scale manufacturing advantages of this technology will ultimately allow Metalenz to proliferate forms of sensing that have previously only been accessible in scientific or industrial laboratories.