Experimental implementation for near-field displaying application of bound states in continuum supported by terahertz metasurfaces

Optical bound states in continuum (BICs) are the special lossless electromagnetic resonance modes found in optical transmission media. Optical BICs supported by metasurfaces can bring a series of image-based applications, which can be classified into far-field image-based applications and near-field image-based applications according to imaging distance. The far field image-based applications of optical BICs supported by metasurfaces have been proved theoretically and experimentally. However, the near-field image-based applications are still in the stage of theoretical demonstration, and its practical feasibility is still questioned. In this letter, we have experimentally demonstrated the feasibility of near-field image-based applications of optical BICs. An all-silicon terahertz metasurface that supports near-field displaying based on quasi-BIC is designed. Its unit cell is based on the classic asymmetric elliptical strip structure, and one unit cell of the metasurface corresponds to one display pixel. By observing the electric field distribution of the metasurface in the near-field region, the display of the given image is successfully constructed. The near-field image-based application of BICs may be beneficial for the information encryption, the hidden item detection, matter analysis, etc. (c) 2023 Optica Publishing Group under the terms of the Optica Open Access Publishing Agreement