Inverse Design in Nanophotonics via Representation Learning

Inverse design in nanophotonics, the computational discovery of structures achieving targeted electromagnetic (EM) responses, has become a key tool for recent optical advances. Traditional intuition-driven or iterative optimization methods struggle with the inherently high-dimensional, non-convex design spaces and the substantial computational demands of EM simulations. Recently, machine learning (ML) has emerged to address these bottlenecks effectively. This review frames ML-enhanced inverse design methodologies through the lens of representation learning, classifying them into two categories: output-side and input-side approaches. Output-side methods use ML to learn a representation in the solution space to create a differentiable solver that accelerates optimization. Conversely, input-side techniques employ ML to learn compact, latent-space representations of feasible device geometries, enabling efficient global exploration through generative models. Each strategy presents unique trade-offs in data requirements, generalization capacity, and novel design discovery potentials. Hybrid frameworks that combine physics-based optimization with data-driven representations help escape poor local optima, improve scalability, and facilitate knowledge transfer. We conclude by highlighting open challenges and opportunities, emphasizing complexity management, geometry-independent representations, integration of fabrication constraints, and advancements in multiphysics co-designs.