Optical cloaking with metamaterials

Wenshan Cai, Purdue University - Main Campus
Uday K. Chettiar, Purdue University
Alexander V. Kildishev, Birck Nanotechnology Center, Purdue University
V. M. Shalaev, Birck Nanotechnology Center and School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Purdue University

Abstract

Artificially structured metamaterials have enabled unprecedented flexibility in manipulating electromagnetic waves and producing new functionalities, including the cloak of invisibility based on coordinate transformation(1-3). Unlike other cloaking approaches(4-6), which are typically limited to subwavelength objects, the transformation method allows the design of cloaking devices that render a macroscopic object invisible. In addition, the design is not sensitive to the object that is being cloaked. The first experimental demonstration of such a cloak at microwave frequencies was recently reported(7). We note, however, that that design(7) cannot be implemented for an optical cloak, which is certainly of particular interest because optical frequencies are where the word 'invisibility' is conventionally defined. Here we present the design of a non-magnetic cloak operating at optical frequencies. The principle and structure of the proposed cylindrical cloak are analysed, and the general recipe for the implementation of such a device is provided.