Dispersion analysis of a reconfigurable grounded slab of liquid crystal loaded by an inductive metasurface

The surface wave dispersion of a grounded layer of liquid crystals (LCs) is investigated by taking into account the inherent electrical reconfigurability of such a material. The dyadic impedance Green's function of the tunable LC grounded slab is calculated and the dispersion curve of the fundamental mode supported by the structure is presented, showing that the orientation of the optical axis of the LCs modifies the surface wave dispersion diagram and can be applied for surface wave propagation control. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that the presence of an inductive metasurface (MTS) on top of the LC layer reduces the resonance frequency and increases the sensitivity to the voltage biasing.