Imaging polarimetry through metasurface polarization gratings

Abstract

Metasurfaces—subwavelength arrays of phase-shifting elements—present new possibilities for polarization optics and polarimetry. In particular, a periodic, polarization-sensitive metasurface diffraction grating can enable full-Stokes imaging polarimetry with a single polarization-sensitive component. In this work, we show that a suitably-designed metasurface grating can serve as a polarimetric “attachment” to an existing intensity-only imaging system, converting it into one capable of full-Stokes imaging polarimetry. Design rules and tradeoffs governing this adaptation are described and demonstrated using a machine vision imaging system as an example. © 2022 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement.