Plasma-state metasurfaces for ultra-intensive field manipulation

Zi-Yu Chen; Hao Xu; Jiao Jia; Yanjie Chen; Siyu Chen; Yan Zhang; Mingxuan Wei; Minghao Ma; Runze Li; Fan Yang; Mo Li; Guangwei Lu; Weijun Zhou; Hanmi Mou; Zhuofan Zhang; Zhida Yang; Jian Gao; Feng liu; Boyuan Li; Min Chen; Liming Chen; Yongtian Wang; Lingling Huang; Wenchao Yan; Shuang Zhang; Jie Zhang

doi:10.1038/s41377-026-02304-7

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arXiv · 2505.15567

Plasma-state metasurfaces for ultra-intensive field manipulation

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Abstract

High-power lasers offer ultrahigh intensities for plasma interactions, but they lack advanced techniques to control the properties of the fields, because no optical elements could withstand their high intensities. The vibrant field of metasurfaces has transformed modern optics by enabling unprecedented control over light at subwavelength through deliberate design. However, metasurfaces have traditionally been limited to solid-state materials and low light intensities. Extending the sophisticated capabilities of metasurfaces from solids into the plasma realm would open new horizons for high-field science. Here, we experimentally demonstrate plasma-state metasurfaces (PSMs) through the photonic spin Hall effect and stable-propagating vortex beam generation irradiated by intense light. Time-resolved pump-probe measurements reveal that the functionality of PSMs can persist for several picoseconds, making them suitable for controlling ultra-intense femtosecond lasers, even in state-of-the-art multi-petawatt systems. Harnessing the powerful toolkit of metasurfaces, this approach holds the promise to revolutionize our ability to manipulate the amplitude, phase, polarization, and wavefront of high-power lasers during their pulse duration. It also opens new possibilities for innovative applications in laser-plasma interactions such as compact particle acceleration and novel radiation sources.

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Zi-Yu Chen, Hao Xu, Jiao Jia, Yanjie Chen, Siyu Chen, Yan Zhang, Mingxuan Wei, Minghao Ma, Runze Li, Fan Yang, Mo Li, Guangwei Lu, Weijun Zhou, Hanmi Mou, Zhuofan Zhang, Zhida Yang, Jian Gao, Feng liu, Boyuan Li, Min Chen, Liming Chen, Yongtian Wang, Lingling Huang, Wenchao Yan, Shuang Zhang, Jie Zhang. 2025-05-21. Plasma-state metasurfaces for ultra-intensive field manipulation. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41377-026-02304-7

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