Subwavelength optical elements (SOEs) and nanofabrications - a path to integrate optical communication components on a chip

Summary form only given. Subwavelength optical elements (SOEs) are a special class of optical elements, where the feature size is less than the wavelength of light, so that there is no non-zero order diffraction. SOEs behave fundamentally differently from bulk (i.e. ray) optics or diffraction optics. First, SOEs can create new optical functions that are unavailable in bulk or diffractive optics. Second, SOEs can perform an optical function with a size that is orders of magnitude smaller than that of a bulk optical element. And third, SOEs perform different optical functions by using different geometries (shape and size) of features but the same materials, rather than different materials as in bulk optics. The second and the third properties of SOEs make them particularly suited for integrated optical communication elements on a chip and can be manufactured at the wafer scale.