Optics at interfaces: ultra-thin color coatings, perfect absorbers, and metasurfaces

Abstract

The vast majority of optical components and devices in use today can be grouped under the umbrella of ``bulk optics''; i.e. they generally have a non-negligible thickness compared to the wavelength of light. This is true of components from lenses to wave plates to Fabry-Perot etalons, all of which need sufficient thickness such that light waves can accumulate an appropriate amount of phase upon propagation through the structure. In this thesis, we develop and explore a variety of optical components that are thin compared to the wavelength of light and lie at the interface between two materials (i.e. a substrate and air). We explore approaches to filter, absorb, redirect, and re-shape light with flat, ultra-thin structures which are easy to fabricate with modern micro- and nanofabrication techniques.