Metamaterial particles for electromagnetic energy harvesting

Metamaterials are typically made of an ensemble of electrically small resonators such as metallic loops. The fact that such particles resonate individually to generate a bulk material behavior having enhanced constitutive parameters is essentially indicative of these particles' ability to collect energy. We show that such particles act as energy collectors when a resistive load is inserted within the particle's gap. A proof of concept is provided using a 5.8 GHz field and a split-ring resonator (SRR) as the electromagnetic energy collecting cell. Numerical simulation for a 9 x 9 SRR array shows the effectiveness of an SRR array as an energy collector plate. (C) 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.doi.org/10.1063/1.4764054]