Ricerc@Sapienza

We numerically investigated the peculiar spectral properties in the mid- to long-infrared range of a metamaterial
composed of silicon carbide subwavelength oriented wires, deposited onto a silicon substrate. We show how
anisotropic ellipsoids can be arranged, choosing both shape and orientation, so that the final resulting emissivity
could match the emissivity peaks of hazardous chemicals for different polarizations of the emitted light. As an
example, we design a metamaterial-based device that matches the emissivity lines of two explosives, such as XRD
(cyclotrimethylenetrinitramine) and TNT (trinitrotoluene), providing a double check in polarization that could
increase accuracy and versatility of chemical and biological sensors.