New design tool for metamaterials: Study shows how to predict nonlinear optical properties

Metamaterials - artificial nanostructures engineered with electromagnetic properties not found in nature - offer tantalizing future prospects such as high resolution optical microscopes and superfast optical computers. To realize the vast potential of metamaterials, however, scientists will need to hone their understanding of the fundamental physics behind them. This will require accurately predicting nonlinear optical properties - meaning that interaction with light changes a material's propert...