Scattering Matrix and Applications

The study of electromagnetic and optical devices often involves estimating their reflection, transmission and absorption properties. These properties are linked to their internal structure, as well as to their geometry and the materials of which they are made. Sophisticated software has been developed over many years to calculate these properties, along with expensive measurement systems to characterize them experimentally.

However, these software and measurement systems are relatively complex to implement and, in the system design phase, it is often useful to have rapid methods for evaluating the performance of these devices. This is what is proposed here in the context of electrical quadrupoles and electromagnetic and optical materials.

In electromagnetics, engineers are often confronted with complex devices combining electronic components and dielectric or magnetic materials. In optics, we often find assemblies of several devices whose transmission and reflection properties need to be rapidly estimated. In both cases, methods based on scattering and transmission matrices enable these properties to be estimated relatively quickly and accurately, as illustrated by the various examples presented in this article.

At the end of the article, readers will find a glossary of the most important terms and expressions used in the article, as well as a table of the symbols used.