Monocular metasurface camera for passive single-shot 4D imaging

Zicheng Shen, Feng Zhao, Chunqi Jin, Shuai Wang, Liangcai Cao and Yuanmu Yang ()
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Zicheng Shen: Tsinghua University
Feng Zhao: Tsinghua University
Chunqi Jin: Tsinghua University
Shuai Wang: Tsinghua University
Liangcai Cao: Tsinghua University
Yuanmu Yang: Tsinghua University

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-8

Abstract: Abstract It is a grand challenge for an imaging system to simultaneously obtain multi-dimensional light field information, such as depth and polarization, of a scene for the accurate perception of the physical world. However, such a task would conventionally require bulky optical components, time-domain multiplexing, and active laser illumination. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a compact monocular camera equipped with a single-layer metalens that can capture a 4D image, including 2D all-in-focus intensity, depth, and polarization of a target scene in a single shot under ambient illumination conditions. The metalens is optimized to have a conjugate pair of polarization-decoupled rotating single-helix point-spread functions that are strongly dependent on the depth of the target object. Combined with a straightforward, physically interpretable image retrieval algorithm, the camera can simultaneously perform high-accuracy depth sensing and high-fidelity polarization imaging over an extended depth of field for both static and dynamic scenes in both indoor and outdoor environments. Such a compact multi-dimensional imaging system could enable new applications in diverse areas ranging from machine vision to microscopy.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-36812-6

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