Photonic metamaterial
Type of electromagnetic metamaterial / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Photonic metamaterial?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
A photonic metamaterial (PM), also known as an optical metamaterial, is a type of electromagnetic metamaterial, that interacts with light, covering terahertz (THz), infrared (IR) or visible wavelengths.[1] The materials employ a periodic, cellular structure.
The subwavelength periodicity[2] distinguishes photonic metamaterials from photonic band gap or photonic crystal structures. The cells are on a scale that is magnitudes larger than the atom, yet much smaller than the radiated wavelength,[3][4] are on the order of nanometers.[3][4][5]
In a conventional material, the response to electric and magnetic fields, and hence to light, is determined by atoms.[6][7] In metamaterials, cells take the role of atoms in a material that is homogeneous at scales larger than the cells, yielding an effective medium model.[3][4][8][6][9]
Some photonic metamaterials exhibit magnetism at high frequencies, resulting in strong magnetic coupling. This can produce a negative index of refraction in the optical range.
Potential applications include cloaking and transformation optics.[10]
Photonic crystals differ from PM in that the size and periodicity of their scattering elements are larger, on the order of the wavelength. Also, a photonic crystal is not homogeneous, so it is not possible to define values of ε (permittivity) or u (permeability).[11]