Nanophotonics shines light on hyperbolic metamaterials

Hyperbolic metamaterials with a unique hyperbolic dispersion relation allow propagating waves with infinitely large wavevectors and a high density of states. Researchers from Korea and Singapore provide a comprehensive review of hyperbolic metamaterials, including artificially structured hyperbolic media and natural hyperbolic materials. They explain key nanophotonic concepts and describe a range of applications for these versatile materials.

Hyperbolic metamaterials: fusing artificial structures to natural 2D materials

Optical metamaterials have presented an innovative method of manipulating light. Hyperbolic metamaterials have an extremely high anisotropy with a hyperbolic dispersion relation. They are able to support high-k modes and exhibit a high density of states which produce distinctive properties that have been exploited in various applications, such as super-resolution imaging, negative refraction, and enhanced emission control. Here, state-of-the-art hyperbolic metamaterials are reviewed, starting from the fundamental principles to applications of artificially structured hyperbolic media to suggest ways to fuse natural two-dimensional hyperbolic materials. The review concludes by indicating the current challenges and our vision for future applications of hyperbolic metamaterials.

Electrostatic theory of rectangular waveguides filled with anisotropic media

The electrostatic (or, in a better word, quasi-electrostatic) theory of waves propagation in a long, rectangular waveguide having perfect electric conductor walls that filled with an anisotropic medium (here, a medium of nanowire-based hyperbolic metamaterials) is presented. Some data on characteristics of these waves are prepared. The presented results include electrostatic field configurations (modes) that can be supported by such structures and their corresponding cutoff frequencies, group velocities, power flows and storage energies.