TY - JOUR
T1 - Enantiomeric switching of chiral metamaterial for terahertz polarization modulation employing vertically deformable MEMS spirals
AU - Kan, Tetsuo
AU - Isozaki, Akihiro
AU - Kanda, Natsuki
AU - Nemoto, Natsuki
AU - Konishi, Kuniaki
AU - Takahashi, Hidetoshi
AU - Kuwata-Gonokami, Makoto
AU - Matsumoto, Kiyoshi
AU - Shimoyama, Isao
N1 - Funding Information:
Fabrication of the electron beam photomask was performed using the electron beam lithography apparatus at the VLSI Design and Education Center (VDEC) of the University of Tokyo. This work was supported by JSPS KAKENHI (26706008). This research was also partially supported by the Murata Science Foundation; the Photon Frontier Network Program; KAKENHI (20104001); Creation of Innovation Centers for Advanced Interdisciplinary Research Areas Program funded by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology (MEXT), Japan; the Center of Innovation Program from Japan Science and Technology Agency.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2015 Macmillan Publishers Limited. All rights reserved.
PY - 2015/10/1
Y1 - 2015/10/1
N2 - Active modulation of the polarization states of terahertz light is indispensable for polarization-sensitive spectroscopy, having important applications such as non-contact Hall measurements, vibrational circular dichroism measurements and anisotropy imaging. In the terahertz region, the lack of a polarization modulator similar to a photoelastic modulator in the visible range hampers expansion of such spectroscopy. A terahertz chiral metamaterial has a huge optical activity unavailable in nature; nevertheless, its modulation is still challenging. Here we demonstrate a handedness-switchable chiral metamaterial for polarization modulation employing vertically deformable Micro Electro Mechanical Systems. Vertical deformation of a planar spiral by a pneumatic force creates a three-dimensional spiral. Enantiomeric switching is realized by selecting the deformation direction, where the polarity of the optical activity is altered while maintaining the spectral shape. A polarization rotation as high as 28° is experimentally observed, thus providing a practical and compact polarization modulator for the terahertz range.
AB - Active modulation of the polarization states of terahertz light is indispensable for polarization-sensitive spectroscopy, having important applications such as non-contact Hall measurements, vibrational circular dichroism measurements and anisotropy imaging. In the terahertz region, the lack of a polarization modulator similar to a photoelastic modulator in the visible range hampers expansion of such spectroscopy. A terahertz chiral metamaterial has a huge optical activity unavailable in nature; nevertheless, its modulation is still challenging. Here we demonstrate a handedness-switchable chiral metamaterial for polarization modulation employing vertically deformable Micro Electro Mechanical Systems. Vertical deformation of a planar spiral by a pneumatic force creates a three-dimensional spiral. Enantiomeric switching is realized by selecting the deformation direction, where the polarity of the optical activity is altered while maintaining the spectral shape. A polarization rotation as high as 28° is experimentally observed, thus providing a practical and compact polarization modulator for the terahertz range.
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U2 - 10.1038/ncomms9422
DO - 10.1038/ncomms9422
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84943196005
SN - 2041-1723
VL - 6
JO - Nature communications
JF - Nature communications
M1 - 8422
ER -