Numerical investigation of metamaterials infiltrated by liquid crystal

We present a comprehensive analysis of the influence of liquid crystal (LC) molecules' reorientation on the electromagnetic behaviors of S-type left-handed metamaterials (LHMs) by considering an isotropic and anisotropic approach, respectively. It is shown that the frequency shift of the magnetic resonance as a function of the LC molecules' reorientation is reversed with a blue shift for the isotropic case and a red shift for the anisotropic one, the latter being in agreement with experiment. For the electric plasma frequency shift, a large quantitative difference is pointed out by the two approaches, although the frequency variation trend is similar. The fact that the scattered electric field is no longer polarized like the incident beam explains these differences, resulting in the unsuitability of an isotropic treatment of LC compounds infiltrated into metamaterials.