title: Subwavelength micropolarizer in a gold film for visible light.
abstract: We have designed and fabricated a 100  μm×100  μm four-sector binary subwavelength reflecting polarization microconverter in a gold film. Using finite-difference time-domain-aided numerical simulations and experiments, the micropolarizer was shown to convert an incident linearly polarized Gaussian beam of wavelength 532 nm into an azimuthally polarized beam. Conditions for generating on-axis regions of nonzero intensity when using propagating optical vortices with different initial polarization were deduced. By putting a spiral phase plate into an azimuthally polarized beam, the intensity pattern was shown to change from diffraction rings to a central peak.
authors.forename: Victor V
authors.initials: VV
authors.lastname: Kotlyar
authors.forename: Sergey S
authors.initials: SS
authors.lastname: Stafeev
authors.forename: Maria V
authors.initials: MV
authors.lastname: Kotlyar
authors.forename: Anton G
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Nalimov
authors.forename: Liam O'
authors.initials: LO
authors.lastname: Faolain