skip to main content
OSTI.GOV title logo U.S. Department of Energy
Office of Scientific and Technical Information

Title: Negative Index Metamaterial Lens for Subwavelength Microwave Detection

Journal Article · · Sensors
DOI:https://doi.org/10.3390/s21144782· OSTI ID:1815654

Metamaterials are engineered periodic structures designed to have unique properties not encountered in naturally occurring materials. One such unusual property of metamaterials is the ability to exhibit negative refractive index over a prescribed range of frequencies. A lens made of negative refractive index metamaterials can achieve resolution beyond the diffraction limit. This paper presents the design of a metamaterial lens and its use in far-field microwave imaging for subwavelength defect detection in nondestructive evaluation (NDE). Theoretical formulation and numerical studies of the metamaterial lens design are presented followed by experimental demonstration and characterization of metamaterial behavior. Finally, a microwave homodyne receiver-based system is used in conjunction with the metamaterial lens to develop a far-field microwave NDE sensor system. A subwavelength focal spot of size 0.82λ was obtained. The system is shown to be sensitive to a defect of size 0.17λ × 0.06λ in a Teflon sample. Consecutive positions of the defect with a separation of 0.23λ was resolvable using the proposed system.

Research Organization:
Lawrence Livermore National Lab. (LLNL), Livermore, CA (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Science (SC); National Science Foundation (NSF)
Grant/Contract Number:
AC52-07NA27344; 1762331
OSTI ID:
1815654
Journal Information:
Sensors, Vol. 21, Issue 14; ISSN 1424-8220
Publisher:
MDPI AGCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

References (41)

A novel approach to Fabry–Pérot-resonance-based lens and demonstrating deep-subwavelength imaging journal July 2020
Microwave Focusing Within Arbitrary Refractive Index Media Using Left-Handed Metamaterial Lenses journal January 2016
Observation of negative refraction and negative phase velocity in left-handed metamaterials journal March 2005
Techniques for measuring the electromagnetic shielding effectiveness of materials. I. Far-field source simulation journal January 1988
Far field microwave NDE of composite structures using time reversal mirror journal January 2018
Microwave nondestructive evaluation of dielectric materials with a metamaterial lens journal May 2008
Negative Refraction Makes a Perfect Lens journal October 2000
Overcoming the Diffraction Limit with a Planar Left-Handed Transmission-Line Lens journal March 2004
Negative Refractive Index in Left-Handed Materials journal October 2000
Limitations on subdiffraction imaging with a negative refractive index slab journal March 2003
First-principles homogenization theory for periodic metamaterials journal August 2011
Focusing of electromagnetic waves by a left-handed metamaterial flat lens journal January 2005
Magnetism from conductors and enhanced nonlinear phenomena
  • Pendry, J. B.; Holden, A. J.; Robbins, D. J.
  • IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, Vol. 47, Issue 11, p. 2075-2084 https://doi.org/10.1109/22.798002
journal January 1999
Microwave Metamaterial Absorber for Non-Destructive Sensing Applications of Grain journal June 2018
Veselago’s lens consisting of left-handed materials with arbitrary index of refraction journal August 2006
A Review of the Scattering-Parameter Extraction Method with Clarification of Ambiguity Issues in Relation to Metamaterial Homogenization journal April 2013
Focusing Ultrasound with an Acoustic Metamaterial Network journal May 2009
Enhancement of Spatial Resolution Using a Metamaterial Sensor in Nondestructive Evaluation journal November 2015
Experimental Verification of a Negative Index of Refraction journal April 2001
Sub-wavelength lateral detection of tissue-approximating masses using an ultrasonic metamaterial lens journal November 2020
Super-resolution imaging by one-dimensional, microwave left-handed metamaterials with an effective negative index journal July 2008
Design, fabrication, and testing of double negative metamaterials journal July 2003
Design of a Split-Ring Resonator Sensor for Near-Field Microwave Imaging journal September 2018
Model-Based Study of a Metamaterial Lens for Nondestructive Evaluation of Composites
  • Datta, Srijan; Shi, Xiaodong; Mukherjee, Saptarshi
  • Journal of Nondestructive Evaluation, Diagnostics and Prognostics of Engineering Systems, Vol. 3, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1115/1.4047027
journal May 2020
Experimental observation of true left-handed transmission peaks in metamaterials journal January 2004
Measurement of the Intrinsic Properties of Materials by Time-Domain Techniques journal November 1970
Subwavelength resolution with a negative-index metamaterial superlens journal June 2007
Enhancement of Microwave Imaging Using a Metamaterial Lens journal July 2019
Effect of poles on subwavelength focusing by an LHM slab journal January 2005
Experimental Observations of a Left-Handed Material That Obeys Snell’s Law journal April 2003
Composite Medium with Simultaneously Negative Permeability and Permittivity journal May 2000
Extremely Low Frequency Plasmons in Metallic Mesostructures journal June 1996
Thin-film sensing with planar terahertz metamaterials: sensitivity and limitations journal January 2008
Robust method to retrieve the constitutive effective parameters of metamaterials journal July 2004
Limitation of FDTD in simulation of a perfect lens imaging system journal January 2005
Wave Refraction in Negative-Index Media: Always Positive and Very Inhomogeneous journal April 2002
Metamaterial Superlenses Operating at Visible Wavelength for Imaging Applications journal October 2018
Analysis of the Nicolson-Ross-Weir Method for Characterizing the Electromagnetic Properties of Engineered Materials journal January 2016
Automatic measurement of complex dielectric constant and permeability at microwave frequencies journal January 1974
Experimental Verification and Simulation of Negative Index of Refraction Using Snell’s Law journal March 2003
THE ELECTRODYNAMICS OF SUBSTANCES WITH SIMULTANEOUSLY NEGATIVE VALUES OF $\epsilon$ AND μ journal April 1968