Spatial Information Lasing Enabled by Full-k-Space Bound States in the Continuum.

Optical amplification and massive information transfer in modern physics depend on stimulated radiation. However, regardless of traditional macroscopic lasers or emerging micro- and nanolasers, the information modulations are generally outside the lasing cavities. On the other hand, bound states in the continuum (BICs) with inherently enormous Q factors are limited to zero-dimensional singularities in momentum space. Here, we propose the concept of spatial information lasing, whose lasing information entropy can be correspondingly controlled by near-field Bragg coupling of guided modes. This concept is verified in gain-loss metamaterials supporting full-k-space BICs with both flexible manipulations and strong confinement of light fields. The counterintuitive high-dimensional BICs exist in a continuous energy band, which provide a versatile platform to precisely control each lasing Fourier component and, thus, can directly convey rich spatial information on the compact size. Single-mode operation achieved in our scheme ensures consistent and stable lasing information. Our findings can be expanded to different wave systems and open new scenarios in informational coherent amplification and high-Q physical frameworks for both classical and quantum applications.