Metasurface-integrated vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers with adaptive beam control for high-temperature stable operation

Vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs) have revolutionized modern optoelectronic systems through their compact architecture and superior beam quality. Nevertheless, their inherent multimode operation induces substantial beam divergence, necessitating complex external beam-shaping components. This study presents a monolithic integration of dielectric metasurfaces with VCSELs, achieving multi-functional beam control—collimation, deflection, and beam splitting—within a footprint below 0.04 mm 2 . The proposed metasurface-integrated VCSELs (MS-VCSELs) demonstrate exceptional thermal stability in uncooled environments, with systematic characterization across a temperature range of 25°C to 150°C. Experimental results reveal temperature-insensitive beam characteristics: the far-field divergence angle variation remains below 5% (<0.1° absolute change), while the beam radius exhibits minimal thermal dependence (± μm/°C). Furthermore, we implement a scalable 10×10 beam-splitting array directly on the VCSEL aperture, generating 100 uniform optical channels with intensity uniformity exceeding 85% across the entire temperature window. Compared to conventional bulk-optics solutions, this platform reduces system volume by three orders of magnitude while eliminating active cooling requirements. These advancements position MS-VCSELs as a transformative technology for high-density optical interconnects, LiDAR systems, and distributed sensing networks operating in extreme thermal environments. The demonstrated temperature resilience, combined with wafer-scale manufacturability, addresses critical challenges in automotive, aerospace, and industrial optoelectronics where size, weight, and power constraints preclude conventional thermal management approaches.