Silicon metasurfaces with bound states in the continuum for high-harmonic generation

Bound states in the continuum (BICs) represent dark modes trapped in the radiation continuum. BICs received significant attention in optics and photonics as a simple tool to achieve giant quality factors by transforming them into quasi-BICs. Here, we report the observation of high-harmonic generation in dielectric metasurfaces hosting BICs. The metasurface is composed of a square lattice with parallel Si bars of a slightly different width placed on a transparent substrate. The structure is engineered to support a quasi-BIC in the mid-IR with a high quality factor. We tune the metasurface asymmetry to enable the optimal coupling condition that provide the highest high-harmonic generation efficiency. In the experiment, we demonstrate the generation of odd optical harmonics from the 3rd to the 11th order in the BIC regime and study their polarization dependence. We measure the dependence of the high-harmonic signal on the input intensity. The concept of metasurfaces with highly localized light boosted by BIC resonances provides a new degree of freedom to control experimentally strong nonlinear optical response.