Negative refraction of inhomogeneous waves in lossy isotropic media

TL;DR

This paper provides a theoretical analysis of negative refraction in lossy isotropic media, revealing conditions under which negative refraction occurs and how it can be achieved in practical lossy materials like metals.

Contribution

It derives explicit expressions for transmitted wave parameters and clarifies the conditions for negative refraction in lossy media, extending understanding beyond ideal lossless cases.

Findings

Negative refraction depends on incident angle in lossy media.

Negative refraction can occur in conventional lossy materials with proper interface orientation.

Explicit formulas for transmitted wave parameters are provided.

Abstract

We theoretically study negative refraction of inhomogeneous waves at the interface of lossy isotropic media. We obtain explicit (up to the sign) expressions for the parameters of a wave transmitted through the interface between two lossy media characterized by complex permittivity and permeability. We show that the criterion of negative refraction that requires negative permittivity and permeability can be used only in the case of a homogeneous incident wave at the interface between a lossless and lossy media. In a more general situation, when the incident wave is inhomogeneous, or both media are lossy, the criterion of negative refraction becomes dependent on an incident angle. Most interestingly, we show that negative refraction can be realized in conventional lossy materials (such as metals) if their interfaces are properly oriented.