Intensity modulation and polarization rotation of visible light by dielectric planar chiral metamaterials

We have demonstrated how dielectric planar chiral surfaces can both modulate the intensity and change the polarization state of visible light diffracted from patterned surfaces. These effects are shown to be dependent on the sense of chirality of the surface and the input polarization state of the light. Individual diffracted beams can show variations of over 30% in their intensities for different input polarization states while opposite enantiomeric structures can exhibit differences of over 50%. The size of these effects could make these surfaces particularly promising candidates for the development of solid-state polarization-state detectors. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.