Quantum-well metasurface for free-space-accessible enhanced nonlinear polarization

Nonlinear frequency conversion underpins important technologies such as telecommunications and quantum computation; however, weak nonlinearities and architectures that resist miniaturization currently limit devices’ efficiency and widespread adoption. Here we combine a band-structure-engineered GaAs/AlGaAs multi-quantum-well heterostructure with a high-quality-factor dielectric metasurface and symmetry-broken guided-mode field profiles to enhance the material nonlinear susceptibility. By engineering a resonant interband transition in the heterostructure, we realize a second-order nonlinear tensor element of 1.6 nm V−1 at 1.57 μm wavelength. We then make it free-space accessible and boost the effective nonlinearity to ~14 nm V−1 using a metasurface patterned on the material. Our proof-of-concept experiment establishes that combining interband-transition engineering and metasurfaces enables giant effective nonlinearities in the near-infrared to visible spectrum. This addresses material and device-level constraints in nonlinear photonics, providing a scalable route to compact, efficient devices.