Effect of defect on the energy distribution inside the left-handed metamaterials

The electromagnetic field energy distribution inside the left-handed metamaterials LHMs with or without blank and line defects is firstly investigated. The LHMs consist of an array of periodic unit cells of copper hexagon split ring resonators SRRs and wires. The internal energy distribution of the LHMs is measured in a microwave measuring line device at X-band frequencies. It is found that the LHMs only respond to the electromagnetic field around the resonance frequency. The electromagnetic field amplitude inside the LHMs generally decreases with the introduction of defects. It is suggested that the electromagnetic field energy reduction may arise from the symmetry breaking in the LHMs.