Compact polarizers with single layer high-index contrast gratings

• A single-layer broadband polarizer was designed for the telecommunication wavelength band.
• High polarization efficiency, high extinction ratio with a broad wavelength range were obtained.
• The extinction ratio of transmission for the central wavelength was 114 dB.

A single-layer broadband polarizer has been designed for operating in the telecommunication wavelength band. The rigorous coupled-wave analysis (RCWA) is applied to study the optical spectrum for the optimized structure. High polarization efficiency, high extinction ratio with a broad wavelength range (1.45–1.75 μm) are obtained. Both of the transmission efficiencies of TM-polarization and reflection efficiencies of TE-polarization are over 95%. The extinction ratio of transmission is over 30 dB in the 1.45–1.75 μm wavelength range, and the value is 114 dB for the central wavelength. The designed polarizer may lead to potential application in optical communication and infrared imaging polarimetry.