Functional control of anomalous reflection via engineered metagratings without polarization limitations

Abstract

Metagratings (MGs) have emerged as a promising platform for manipulating the anomalous propagation of electromagnetic waves. However, traditional methods for designing functional MG-based devices face significant challenges, including complex model structures, time-consuming optimization processes, and specific polarization requirements. In this work, we propose an inverse-design approach to engineer simple MG structures comprising periodic air grooves on a flat metal surface, which can control anomalous reflection without polarization limitations. Through rigorous analytical methods, we derive solutions that achieve perfect retroreflection and perfect specular reflection, thereby leading to functional control over the linearly-polarized electromagnetic waves. Such capabilities enable intriguing functionalities including polarization-dependent retroreflection and polarization-independent retroreflection, as confirmed through full-wave simulations. Our work offers a simple and effective method to control freely electromagnetic waves, with potential applications spanning wavefront engineering, polarization splitting, cloaking technologies, and remote sensing.

Graphical abstract

Keywords

metagratings / inverse design / perfect retroreflection / polarization control

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Declarations

The authors declare no competing interests and no conflicts.

Electronic supplementary materials

The online version contains supplementary material available at https://doi.org/10.15302/frontphys.2025.024202.

Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (No. 12274225), the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No. BK20230089), the Science and Technology Plan Special Foundation of Jiangsu Province (No. ZAG23009), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Nos. NE2022007 and NS2023056).

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2024 Higher Education Press