Recently, Professor Dai Qing of Shanghai Jiao Tong University, in collaboration with Researcher Hu Hai from the National Center for Nanoscience and Technology and their colleagues, conducted a comprehensive review of the abnormal transmission mechanisms of polaritons within hyperbolic media. They introduced a novel concept termed 'atomically fabricated optical states' and laid out a cross-dimensional physical framework along with an interdisciplinary development pathway. Their related research findings were published online in Nature Reviews Materials in a review article format.

Modern optics and material physics have long grappled with a significant challenge: the substantial discrepancy between the wavelength of free-space optical fields and the microscopic characteristic scales (such as those of molecules and lattices). This mismatch limits the precise control of light-matter interactions at scales much smaller than the wavelength. Drawing inspiration from the semiconductor industry's method of controlling electron behavior through atomic-level structures, the research team offered fresh perspectives to tackle this longstanding issue.