Educational simulations of spectral color dispersion in negative index prisms

Abstract

Using a free, open-source ray-tracing program, photorealistic spectral images have been created to show how several prisms would appear in the real world if they were made with materials that have a negative index of refraction (metamaterials). The aim of this work is to provide students with a visual interpretation of the atypical behavior of negative-index materials and a look at dispersion in the visible range in such prisms, resulting in educationally valuable outcomes.