Extracting Metamaterial Properties of Negative-Index and Plasmonic scatterers from the Mie Coefficients

Abstract An alternative theoretical approach is presented for improving the understanding of the scattering properties of simple negative-index and plasmonic spheres. The Mie scattering coefficients are broken up into two terms, the first representing the expected fields of a corresponding positive-index sphere, the second emerging from the intrinsic metamaterial nature of the scatterer. Some limiting cases are considered, e.g. dipole approximation), together with their circuital representation in terms of equivalent lumped elements. This formalism may be adopted, for example, in the evaluation of the particular internal and scattered electromagnetic field patterns observed for these particular classes of particles.