Metamaterial infrared refractometer for determining broadband complex refractive index.

Infrared refractive index is an indispensable parameter for various fields including infrared photonics. To date, critical-angle refractometers, V-block refractometers, and spectroscopic ellipsometry have been commonly used to measure the refractive index. Although every method has an accuracy of four decimal places for the refractive index, a measurable wavelength region is limited up to about 2 µm. In this study, we demonstrated a metamaterial infrared refractometer for determining broadband complex refractive index. Using the device, a broadband (40-120 THz; wavelength 2.5-7.5 µm) and high-precision(< 5 ×10-3) complex refractive index of polymethyl methacrylate was measured for the first time.