Prism coupling to 'designer' surface plasmons

Copyright © 2008 Optical Society of America. This paper was published in Optics Express and is made available as an electronic reprint with the permission of OSA. The paper can be found at the following URL on the OSA website: http://www.opticsinfobase.org/oe/abstract.cfm?URI=oe-16-25-20441 . Systematic or multiple reproduction or distribution to multiple locations via electronic or other means is prohibited and is subject to penalties under law.The excitation of ‘designer’ surface-plasmon-like modes on periodically perforated metals is demonstrated at microwave frequencies using the classical method of prism coupling. In addition we provide a complete formalism for accurately determining the dispersion of these surface modes. Our findings fully validate the use of metamaterials to give surface plasmon-like behavior at frequencies below the visible