Metasurface-enabled broadband multidimensional photodetectors

Light encodes multidimensional information, such as intensity, polarization, and spectrum. Traditional extraction of this light information requires discrete optical components by subdividing the detection area into many “one-to-one” functional pixels. The broadband photodetection of high-dimensional optical information with a single integrated on-chip detector is highly sought after, yet it poses significant challenges. In this study, we employ a metasurface-assisted graphene photodetector, enabling to simultaneously detect and differentiate various polarization states and wavelengths of broadband light (1-8 μm) at the wavelength prediction accuracy of 0.5 μm. The bipolar polarizability empowered by this design allows to decouple multidimensional information (encompassing polarization and wavelength), which can be achieved by encoding vectorial photocurrents with varying polarities and amplitudes. Furthermore, cooperative multiport metasurfaces are adopted and boosted by machine learning techniques. It enables precise spin-wavelength differentiation over an extremely broad wavelength range (1-8 μm). Our innovation offers a recipe for highly compact and high-dimensional spectral-polarization co-detection. The detection of light intensity, polarization, and spectral information with a single device is desired for efficient optical sensing and computing applications. Here, the authors report the realization of metasurface-assisted graphene photodetectors able to simultaneously detect polarization states and wavelengths of broadband infrared light.