Fouad Soliman / Karima Mahmoud
Metamaterial (from the Greek word μετά meta, meaning 'beyond' or 'after', and the Latin word material, meaning 'matter' or 'material') is a type of material engineered to have a property, typically rarely observed in naturally occurring materials, that is derived not from the properties of the base materials but from their newly designed structures. They are fashioned from multiple materials, such as metals and plastics, and are usually arranged in repeating patterns, at scales that are smaller than the wavelengths of the phenomena they influence. Their precise shape, geometry, size, orientation, and arrangement give them their 'smart' properties of manipulating electromagnetic, acoustic, or even seismic waves: by blocking, absorbing, enhancing, or bending waves, to achieve benefits that go beyond what is possible with conventional materials. Appropriately designed metamaterials can affect wave of electromagnetic radiation or sound in a manner not observed in bulk materials. Those that exhibit a negative index of refraction for particular wavelengths have been the focus of a large amount of research. These materials are known as negative-index meta-materials.
