biostudies-literatureChen WBasic Research Program of Jiangsu ProvinceNational Natural Science Foundation of China (National Science Foundation of China)2818https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC11928535biostudies-literatureUnknown16(1)Spatiotemporal (ST) beams-ultrafast optical wavepackets with customized spatial and temporal characteristics-present a significant contrast to conventional spatial-structured light and hold the potential to revolutionize our understanding and manipulation of light. However, progress in ST beam research has been constrained by the absence of a universal framework for its analysis and generation. Here, we introduce the concept of 'two-dimensional space-time duality', establishing a foundational duality between spatial-structured light and ST beams. We show that breaking the exact balance between paraxial diffraction and narrow-band dispersion is crucial for guiding the dynamics of ST wavepackets. Leveraging this insight, we pioneer a versatile complex-amplitude modulation strategy, enabling Nature communicationsTailoring spatiotemporal wavepackets via two-dimensional space-time duality.PMC11928535BK20232040T24883026237511962305157Qiu CWMa LLYu AZYang JCChen WLu YQWang ZYZhou ZfalseTailoring spatiotemporal wavepackets via two-dimensional space-time duality.Spatiotemporal (ST) beams-ultrafast optical wavepackets with customized spatial and temporal characteristics-present a significant contrast to conventional spatial-structured light and hold the potential to revolutionize our understanding and manipulation of light. However, progress in ST beam research has been constrained by the absence of a universal framework for its analysis and generation. Here, we introduce the concept of 'two-dimensional space-time duality', establishing a foundational duality between spatial-structured light and ST beams. We show that breaking the exact balance between paraxial diffraction and narrow-band dispersion is crucial for guiding the dynamics of ST wavepackets. Leveraging this insight, we pioneer a versatile complex-amplitude modulation strategy, enabling 2025-01-01T00:00:00Z2025 Mar2025-07-05T03:04:39.162Z2025-07-05T03:04:39.162ZS-EPMC119285354011883510.1038/s41467-025-57743-4