Broadband polarization-converting mirror for the visible region of the spectrum.

A mirror structure that enables the polarization of linearly polarized light to be rotated by 90 degrees over the entire visible region of the spectrum is presented. Theoretical modeling is used to show that this phenomenon occurs for light that is normally incident upon a metal grating consisting of a series of high and narrow ridges that are oriented at 45 degrees to the polarization angle. This broad polarization-conversion band is shown to arise from mode mixing of surface plasmon polariton-mediated polarization-conversion bands and interference-mediated polarization-conversion bands.