A Chiral Route to Negative Refraction

• Published in: Science (American Association for the Advancement of Science) Vol. 306; no. 5700; pp. 1353 - 1355
• Main Author: Pendry, J. B.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Association for the Advancement of Science 19.11.2004; The American Association for the Advancement of Science
• Subjects: Chirality; Condensed matter: electronic structure, electrical, magnetic, and optical properties; Electromagnetism; Exact sciences and technology; Frequency ranges; Fundamental areas of phenomenology (including applications); Group velocity; Lenses; Lenses (Optics); Light; Magnetic fields; Magnetic permeability; Magnetic phase boundaries (including magnetic transitions, metamagnetism, etc.); Magnetic properties and materials; Magnetically ordered materials: other intrinsic properties; Optical materials; Optics; Permeability; Permittivity; Physics; Refraction; Resonance; Wave refraction; Wavelengths; United Kingdom; Theoretical study; Chiral compound; Optical materials; Negative refraction; Metamaterial
• ISSN: 0036-8075; 1095-9203; 1095-9203
• DOI: 10.1126/science.1104467

Negative refraction is currently achieved by driving the magnetic permeability and electrical permittivity simultaneously negative, thus requiring two separate resonances in the refracting material. The introduction of a single chiral resonance leads to negative refraction of one polarization, resulting in improved and simplified designs of negatively refracting materials and opening previously unknown avenues of investigation in this fast-growing subject.