Ultrathin structures that can bend, focus, or filter light, “metasurfaces” are reshaping how scientists think about optics. These engineered materials offer precise control over light’s behavior, but many conventional designs are held back by inefficiencies. Typically, they rely on local resonances within individual nanostructures, which often leak energy or perform poorly at wide angles. These shortcomings limit their usefulness in areas like sensing, nonlinear optics, and quantum technologies.

A growing area of research looks instead to “nonlocal” m…