Controlling Vector Bessel Beams with Metasurfaces

Metamaterial surfaces (metasurfaces) can generate tailored electromagnetic wavefronts with spatially varying phase and polarization profiles. In this study a common Gaussian beam is transformed into a vector Bessel beam, which is useful for particle trapping, near-field probes, and laser machining. Going forward, the design and fabrication methodology presented here could be used to create efficient metasurfaces even at optical wavelengths, enabling applications such as tractor beams in compact nanoscale devices.