Study of scattering patterns and subwavelength scale imaging based on finite-sized metamaterials

A metamaterial slab, used as a superlens in a subwavelength imaging system, is frequently assumed homogeneous. It is the bulk properties of the metamaterial which are responsible for the resolution of the transferred information in the image domain, as a result of high transverse wave-vector couplin...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Schenk, John O., Fiddy, Michael A., Zhang, Yuan, Chuang, Yi-Chen
Other Authors: School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: 2012
Subjects:
Online Access:https://hdl.handle.net/10356/94379
http://hdl.handle.net/10220/7815
Description
Summary:A metamaterial slab, used as a superlens in a subwavelength imaging system, is frequently assumed homogeneous. It is the bulk properties of the metamaterial which are responsible for the resolution of the transferred information in the image domain, as a result of high transverse wave-vector coupling. However, how in a discretized metamaterial, individual meta-atoms (i.e., the meta-elements composing a negative index metamaterial slab) contribute to the imaging process is still actively studied. The main aim of this paper is to investigate the consequences of using only a few meta-atoms as a negative index slab-equivalent for subwavelength scale imaging. We make a specific choice for a meta-atom and investigate its resonant scattering patterns. We report on how knowledge of these 3D scattering patterns provides a means to understand the transfer of high spatial frequencies and assist with the design an improved negative index slab.