Suppression of narrow-band transparency in a metasurface induced by a strongly enhanced electric field

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates how a metasurface with coupled resonators can suppress electromagnetically induced transparency through enhanced local electric fields, leading to plasma formation and a transition to Lorentz-type metasurfaces.

Contribution

It introduces a method to suppress EIT-like transmission in metasurfaces by leveraging strongly enhanced electric fields and plasma generation, combining energy squeezing and low group velocity effects.

Findings

Electric field enhancement induces plasma at resonator gaps.

Suppression of EIT-like transparency observed.

Transition to Lorentz-type metasurfaces confirmed.

Abstract

We realize a suppression of an electromagnetically induced transparency (EIT) like transmission in a metasurface induced by a local electric field that is strongly enhanced based on two approaches: squeezing of electromagnetic energy in resonant metasurfaces and enhancement of electromagnetic energy density associated with a low group velocity. The EIT-like metasurface consists of a pair of radiatively coupled cut-wire resonators, and it can effect both field enhancement approaches simultaneously. The strongly enhanced local electric field generates an air discharge plasma at either of the gaps of the cut-wire resonators, which causes the EIT-like metasurface to change into two kinds of Lorentz type metasurfaces.