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Total refraction
Encyclopedia
Total refraction occurs when an incident wave on an interface between two media with opposite refractive index
signs is completely transmitted
. There is then no reflected
wave. This can occur only when one of the two materials has a negative refractive index. Composite metamaterial
s with this unusual property were fabricated for the first time in 2002. This phenomenon is conditioned by the wave impedance matching between the two media.
Refractive index
In optics the refractive index or index of refraction of a substance or medium is a measure of the speed of light in that medium. It is expressed as a ratio of the speed of light in vacuum relative to that in the considered medium....
signs is completely transmitted
Transmittance
In optics and spectroscopy, transmittance is the fraction of incident light at a specified wavelength that passes through a sample. A related term is absorptance, or absorption factor, which is the fraction of radiation absorbed by a sample at a specified wavelength...
. There is then no reflected
Reflection (physics)
Reflection is the change in direction of a wavefront at an interface between two differentmedia so that the wavefront returns into the medium from which it originated. Common examples include the reflection of light, sound and water waves...
wave. This can occur only when one of the two materials has a negative refractive index. Composite metamaterial
Metamaterial
Metamaterials are artificial materials engineered to have properties that may not be found in nature. Metamaterials usually gain their properties from structure rather than composition, using small inhomogeneities to create effective macroscopic behavior....
s with this unusual property were fabricated for the first time in 2002. This phenomenon is conditioned by the wave impedance matching between the two media.