Anomalous resonance frequency shift in liquid crystal-loaded THz metamaterials

Abstract Babinet complementary patterns of a spectrally tunable metamaterial incorporating nematic liquid crystal is normally assumed to exhibit the same tuning range. Here we show that for hybrid, crystal-loaded metamaterial, sensitivity its terahertz resonances variations refractive index differs substantially two patterns. This due mismatch between alignment and direction local electric field induced in Furthermore, more intriguingly, our experimental data indicate it possible shift resonance positive pattern beyond limit imposed by mismatch. Our analysis suggests observed anomalous frequency results from orientational optical nonlinearity crystal.