Photonic Forces on Dielectric Metasurfaces for Passive Stabilization of Laser Propelled Spacecraft

In this talk, we will show that the ability of metasurfaces to create arbitrary reflected/transmitted wavefronts leads to complex – and measurable – optical forces on the metasurface. We will show how these forces manifest on the microscopic scale for individual resonators (the base elements of the metasurface) and on the macroscopic scale. In addition, we will discuss the non-intuitive behavior these forces can exhibit and the challenges that result in controlling these forces. Finally, we will demonstrate the potential value of a metasurface to serve as a ‘laser sail’ for a recently proposed relativistic spacecraft. To this end, photonic forces are used to passively stabilize the metasurface in a high power laser beam.