Phys.org  July 10, 2024 Manipulating the polarization of light at the nanoscale is key to the development of next-generation optoelectronic devices. This is typically done via waveplates using optically anisotropic crystals, with thicknesses on the order of the wavelength. A team of researchers in the US (Stanford, SLAC Nation Acceleration Laboratory, Harvard University, Columbia University, Florida State University, UCLA) used a novel ultrafast electron-beam-based technique sensitive to transient near fields at THz frequencies to observe a giant anisotropy in the linear optical response in Tungsten ditelluride (WTe2). They demonstrated that it is possible to tune THz polarization using a 50 […]