Light manipulation with encoded plasmonic nanostructures

Plasmonics, which allows for manipulation of light field beyond the fundamental diffraction limit, has recently attracted tremendous research efforts. The propagating surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) confined on a metal-dielectric interface provide an ideal two-dimensional (2D) platform to develop subwavelength optical circuits for on-chip information processing and communication. The surface plasmon resonance of rationally designed metallic nanostructures, on the other hand, enables pronounced phase and polarization modulation for light beams travelling in three-dimensional (3D) free space. Flexible 2D and free-space propagating light manipulation can be achieved by encoding plasmonic nanostructures on a 2D surface, promising the design, fabrication and integration of the nextgeneration optical architectures with substantially reduced footprint. It is envisioned that the encoded plasmonic nanostructures can significantly expand available toolboxes for novel light manipulation. In this review, we presents the fundamentals, recent developments and future perspectives in this emerging field, aiming to open up new avenues to developing revolutionary photonic devices.