Negatively refracting chiral metamaterials: a review

Abstract

Abstract. Chirality extends the class of negatively refracting metamaterials by endowing a richer palette of electromagnetic properties. Chiral metamaterials can support negative refraction, which must be assessed in light of the closely related phenomenons of negative phase velocity and counterposition. Two categories of chiral metamaterials are being examined these days: (a) homogeneous and homogenizable chiral materials, as exemplified by isotropic chiral materials, Faraday chiral materials, and materials with simultaneous mirror-conjugated and racemic chirality characteristics; and (b) structurally chiral materials, as exemplified by helicoidal bianisotropic materials and ambichiral materials. The planewave response of a half-space occupied by a chiral metamaterial is complex, and important distinctions between negative refraction, negative phase velocity, and counterposition emerge. C 2010 Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers.

Experimental investigation of circular Bragg phenomenon for oblique incidence

“…Conceived as early as 1869 by Reusch [21], a Reusch pile is a stack of layers of an anisotropic dielectric material with an incremental rotation from one layer to the next about an axis normal to the layers [22,23], and can be realized with STF technology [24]. The Reusch pile has even entered the arena of metamaterials [25,26].…”

A plethora of negative-refraction phenomenons in relativistic and non-relativistic scenarios

“…While the simplest material that can support negative refraction is an isotropic dielectric-magnetic material, it is notable that even an isotropic dielectric material can support negative phase velocity (in conjunction with positive refraction) [7]. However, there is greater scope for negative phase velocity in more complex materials such as isotropic chiral [11,12] and bianisotropic [13,14] materials.…”

Chiral media characterization using both linear and circular polarized waves

“…The electromagnetic behavior of CM presents two effects: electromagnetic rotatory dispersion, which causes a rotation of the polarization direction for a linearly polarized (LP) wave, and circular dichroism (a change in the polarization from linear to elliptical) due to the different absorption coefficients of right and left circularly polarized (CP) waves. A large variety of resonant structures has been designed and analyzed in order to produce high values of optical activity, circular dichroism and negative refractive indices [2]- [3].…”