Electrically tunable strong coupling in a hybrid-2D excitonic metasurface for optical modulation

Abstract

Atomically thin semiconductors exhibit tunable exciton resonances that can be harnessed for dynamic manipulation of visible light in ultra-compact metadevices. However, the rapid nonradiative decay and dephasing of excitons at room temperature limits current active excitonic metasurfaces to few-percent efficiencies. Here, we leverage the combined merits of pristine 2D heterostructures and non-local dielectric metasurfaces to enhance the excitonic light-matter interaction, achieving strong and electrically tunable exciton-photon coupling at ambient conditions in a hybrid-2D excitonic metasurface. Using this, we realize a free-space optical modulator and experimentally demonstrate 9.9 dB of reflectance modulation. The electro-optic response, characterized by a continuous transition from strong to weak coupling, is mediated by gating-induced variations in the free carrier concentration altering the exciton\`s nonradiative decay rate. These results highlight how hybrid-2D excitonic metasurfaces offer novel opportunities to realize nanophotonic devices for active wavefront manipulation and optical communication.