Design and Fabrication of Chip-Integrated Metamaterials for Full Stokes Polarization Imaging in VIS-NIR

The demand for full Stokes polarization imaging has spurred research into pixel-level metamaterials that integrate circular and linear polarization filters. However, there remains a significant lack of full Stokes metamaterials that are easy to manufacture, demonstrate excellent performance, and can be integrated with imaging sensors. Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop a manufacturing process that produces high-quality, cost-effective, and efficient pixelated full Stokes metamaterials with superior optical performance. In this study, we report on chiral metamaterials inspired by the eyes of mantis shrimp based on aluminum nanogratings. These metamaterials employ planar 2D metal nanogratings for miniaturized designs. It incorporates both circular and linear polarization filters, exhibiting significant optical performance across the visible and near-infrared spectrum. These metamaterials are manufactured using processes such as nanoimprint lithography, aluminum thermal evaporation process, and photolithography, providing advantages such as large area, low cost, and high efficiency. Metamaterials with a thickness of less than 1 μm have been presented, which exhibit a certain degree of tolerance to manufacturing errors. By integrating these metamaterials with imaging sensors through a flexible design and manufacturing approach, we achieved full Stokes polarization imaging.