Manipulating the loss in electromagnetic cloaks for perfect wave absorption

We examine several ways to manipulate the loss in electromagnetic cloaks, based on transformation electromagnetics. It is found that, by utilizing inherent electric and magnetic losses of metamaterials, perfect wave absorption can be achieved based on several popular designs of electromagnetic cloaks. A practical implementation of the absorber, consisting of ten discrete layers of metamaterials, is proposed. The new devices demonstrate super-absorptivity over a moderate wideband range, suitable for both microwave and optical applications. It is corroborated that the device is functional with a subwavelength thickness and, hence, advantageous compared to the conventional absorbers. (C) 2009 Optical Society of America