Experimental characterization of magnetic surface plasmons on metamaterials with negative permeability

We study the surface plasmons (SPs) that exist at the interface between air and a metamaterial constructed of split ring resonators (SRRs). The SRR metamaterial possesses a frequency band in the microwave regime (12.5-14 GHz) over which the permeability is negative. We apply an attenuated total reflection technique in the Otto configuration in which a beam of microwaves is reflected from a higher dielectric (polycarbonate) prism to excite and probe the surface plasmons. The resulting evanescent microwave fields on the transmission side of the prism couple to SPs on the metamaterial and are indicated by a dip in the reflected power. The experimental data are compared with analytic solutions in which the metamaterial slab is approximated as an infinite half space, for which the frequency-dependent permeability (and permittivity) is derived from finite-element simulations on an SRR structure with the same parameters as those measured. © 2005 The American Physical Society.

Duke Scholars

Author David R. Smith Electrical and Computer Engineering