3D printed diffractive optical elements for THz spatial multiplexing

This study presents the design, manufacturing, and examination of single-input multiple-output (SIMO) diffractive structures for spatial frequency-division (de)multiplexing of terahertz (THz) radiation. SIMO phase structures were designed as a combination of two different types of diffractive optical elements. Structures were examined in numerical simulations. Subsequently, SIMO structures were manufactured from cyclic olefin copolymer material using 3D printing fused deposition modeling technology and validated in the experimental setup. Compared to binary structures presented in our previous study, the novel design method of SIMO structures provides 40% higher effective efficiency.