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Metasurfaces, composed of engineered nanoantennas, enable unprecedented control over electromagnetic waves by leveraging multipolar resonances to tailor light–matter interactions. This review explores key physical mechanisms that govern their optical properties, including the role of multipolar resonances in shaping metasurface responses, the emergence of bound states in the continuum (BICs) that support high-quality factor modes, and the Purcell effect, which enhances spontaneous emission rates at the nanoscale. These effects collectively underpin the design of advanced photonic devices with tailored spectral, angular, and polarization-dependent properties. This review discusses recent advances in metasurfaces and applications based on them, highlighting research that employs full-wave numerical simulations, analytical and semi-analytic techniques, multipolar decomposition, nanofabrication, and experimental characterization to explore the interplay of multipolar resonances, bound and quasi-bound states, and enhanced light–matter interactions. A particular focus is given to metasurface-enhanced photodetectors, where structured nanoantennas improve light absorption, spectral selectivity, and quantum efficiency. By integrating metasurfaces with conventional photodetector architectures, it is possible to enhance responsivity, engineer photocarrier generation rates, and even enable functionalities such as polarization-sensitive detection. The interplay between multipolar resonances, BICs, and emission control mechanisms provides a unified framework for designing next-generation optoelectronic devices. This review consolidates recent progress in these areas, emphasizing the potential of metasurface-based approaches for high-performance sensing, imaging, and energy-harvesting applications.
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This content will become publicly available on March 11, 2026
Enhancing MXene Multipolar Resonances Through Metasurface Lattice Engineering
ABSTRACT When arranged in a metasurface, the collective enhancement of field interactions within scattering elements enables precise control over the incident light phase and amplitude. In this work, we analyze collective multipolar resonances in metasurfaces that arise from the spatially extended nature of electromagnetic interactions within these structures, with particular emphasis on MXene metasurfaces. This collective scattering leads to unique and tunable resonance behaviors that reach beyond the simple dipolar approximations, thus enabling advanced manipulation of light at subwavelength scales. We also explore resonances in the scatterers and metasurfaces made of different materials, categorizing them into lossy materials, including transition metal dichalcogenides and conventional metals, and high‐refractive‐index materials, such as silicon. We observe the excitation of MXene multipolar resonances across the visible‐ and infrared‐wavelength spectra and demonstrate their control through the design of scattering elements of the metasurface. We show that periodic lattice arrays support strong localized resonances through the collective response of individual nanoresonators and that one can control multipolar resonances by engineering metasurface nanoresonators and their distribution.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2418519
- PAR ID:
- 10577870
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Nano Select
- ISSN:
- 2688-4011
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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