High-speed independent polarization modulation based on dual channel 2DEG anisotropic terahertz metasurfaces

Abstract

In communication and imaging systems, anisotropic metasurfaces bring new degrees of freedom for the independent control of electromagnetic waves with different polarizations. This paper proposes a dual-polarization modulation metasurface (DPMM) operating in the terahertz (THz) frequency range, which can effectively and independently modulate two orthogonally linearly polarized electromagnetic waves. The metasurface unit adopts an anisotropic structure, and by integrating multiple GaN-based high electron mobility transistors (GaN-HEMTs) into the anisotropic structure, independent control of the two-dimension electron gas (2DEG) carrier concentration in the dual-polarization channel is achieved, enabling selective modulation of x-polarization and y-polarization waves. Simulation and static experimental results demonstrate the excellent modulation isolation performance of the DPMM, with a maximum isolation exceeding 45 dB. Dynamic experiments further highlight the high-speed modulation effect, with modulation speeds exceeding 1 GHz for a single channel and an overall modulation speed of 2 GHz for dual polarization, highlighting its potential for enhancing channel capacity and information throughput in THz communication and imaging systems.