Electromagnetic surface waves guided by the planar interface of isotropic chiral materials

Abstract

The propagation of electromagnetic surface waves guided by the planar interface of two isotropic chiral materials, namely materials \calA and \calB, was investigated by numerically solving the associated canonical boundary-value problem. Isotropic chiral material \calB was modeled as a homogenized composite material, arising from the homogenization of an isotropic chiral component material and an isotropic achiral, nonmagnetic, component material characterized by the relative permittivity \eps_a^\calB. Changes in the nature of the surface waves were explored as the volume fraction f_a^\calB of the achiral component material varied. Surface waves are supported only for certain ranges of f_a^\calB; within these ranges only one surface wave, characterized by its relative wavenumber $q$, is supported at each value of f_a^\calB. For \mbox{Re} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric > 0 , as \left| \mbox{Im} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric \right| increases surface waves are supported for larger ranges of f_a^\calB and \left| \mbox{Im} \lec q \ric \right| for these surface waves increases. For \mbox{Re} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric < 0 , as \mbox{Im} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric increases the ranges of f_a^\calB that support surface-wave propagation are almost unchanged but \mbox{Im} \lec q \ric for these surface waves decreases. The surface waves supported when \mbox{Re} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric < 0 may be regarded as akin to surface-plasmon-polariton waves, but those supported for when \mbox{Re} \lec \eps_a^\calB \ric > 0 may not