Structured light refers to the arbitrarily tailoring of optical fields in all their degrees of freedom (DoFs), from spatial to temporal. Although orbital angular momentum (OAM) is perhaps the most topical example, and celebrating 30 years since its connection to the spatial structure of light, control over other DoFs is slowly gaining traction, promising access to higher-dimensional forms of structured light. Nevertheless, harnessing these new DoFs in quantum and classical states remains challenging, with the toolkit still in its infancy. In this perspective, we discuss methods, challenges, and opportunities for the creation, detection, and control of multiple DoFs for higher-dimensional structured light. We present a roadmap for future development trends, from fundamental research to applications, concentrating on the potential for larger-capacity, higher-security information processing and communication, and beyond.

结构光是指在从空间到时间的所有自由度 (DoF) 上任意定制光场。尽管轨道角动量 (OAM) 可能是最热门的例子，并且庆祝其与光的空间结构联系 30 周年，但对其他自由度的控制正在慢慢获得关注，有望获得更高维形式的结构光。然而，在量子态和经典态中利用这些新的自由度仍然具有挑战性，该工具包仍处于起步阶段。从这个角度来看，我们讨论了高维结构光的多个自由度的创建、检测和控制的方法、挑战和机遇。我们提出了未来发展趋势的路线图，从基础研究到应用，重点关注更大容量、更高安全性的信息处理和通信等方面的潜力。