Field-Programmable Mobile Magneto-Photonic Metaparticles for Active Light Manipulation and Steering

Abstract: Controlling the flow of light within complex and dynamic environments is essential for a wide range of applications, from deep-tissue imaging and optogenetics to precision phototherapy. Typically, such light flows are controlled using external optical systems requiring line-of-sight access or by embedded nanoparticle scatterers with limited directional control, underscoring the need for mobile photonic agents capable of actively delivering and steering light within complex media. Here, we present magneto-photonic metaparticles: mobile, magnetically actuated microstructures that integrate a magnetic core with a nanoimprinted photonic surface. This hybrid design merges the reconfigurability of photonic metasurfaces with the mobility of magnetic actuation, enabling programmable translation, rotation, and real-time beam steering in aqueous media. In a concept-proof demonstration, we realize polymeric metaparticles with embedded magnetic core and nanoimprinted surface that exhibit controlled locomotion and active, magnetically programmable beam steering. Our design approach further points to more sophisticated metaparticle designs with high-efficiency, polarization-insensitive light steering, compatible with a scalable, single-step nanoimprint process. The mobile magneto-photonic metaparticle platform combines metasurface-level optical control with magnetic mobility, offering a versatile and scalable approach for active photonic control in complex environments.