Cylindrical vector beams demultiplexing communication based on a vectorial diffractive optical element

Cylindrical vector beams with polarization singularities, transmission stability and turbulence resilient, are orthogonally structured light beams providing new degrees of freedom for multiplexing optical communications. The demultiplexing of the CVBs with high efficiency and low crosstalk is of vital importance for the practical applications. Here, we propose a lens-less CVB sorting approach with a set of dielectric metasurface devices. The metasurface is composed of elliptical silicon nanopillars, which are capable of vector field steering. By performing mode transformations on both left-handed and right-handed polarization components of the CVBs, cylindrical vector beams can be demultiplexed with high efficiency and reduced crosstalk. Furthermore, by adjusting the phase response of the vectorial diffractive element into a set of Pancharatnam–Berry (PB) phase planes, we experimentally demonstrate 11 CVBs sorting with a set of P–B phase liquid crystal devices. The proposed device may benefit the CVB-based mode multiplexing communications in future.