Multiplexing multifoci optical metasurfaces for information encoding in the ultraviolet spectrum

Recently, optical metasurfaces have attracted much attention due to their versatile features in manipulating phase, polarization, and amplitude of both reflected and transmitted light. Because it controls over four degrees of freedom: phase, polarization, amplitude, and wavelength of light wavefronts, optical cryptography is a promising technology in information security. So far, information encoding can be implemented by the metasurface in one-dimensional (1D) mode (either wavelength or polarization) and in a two-dimensional (2D) mode of both wavelength and polarization. Here, we demonstrate multiplexing multifoci optical metasurfaces for information encoding in the ultraviolet spectrum both in the 1D and 2D modes in the spatial zone, composed of high-aspect-ratio aluminum nitride nanorods, which introduce discontinuous phases through the Pancharatnam–Berry phase to realize multifoci in the spatial zone. Since the multiplexed multifocal optical metasurfaces are sensitive to the helicity of the incident light and the wavelength is within the ultraviolet spectrum, the security of the information encrypted by it would be guaranteed.