Excitation of guided waves in materials with negative refraction

We study, both analytically and numerically, electromagnetic beam transmission through a layered structure that includes a waveguide slab of metamaterial with negative refraction. The resonant excitation of the leaky guided modes, via attenuated total reflection configuration, can lead to the formation of an anomalous lateral shift in the transmitted beam, as well as to the zero reflection (i.e., high or even total transparency). However, we demonstrate a trade-off between high transparency and high lateral beam shift.