Educational computer simulations for visualizing and understanding the interaction of electromagnetic waves with metamaterials

In contrast to ordinary materials, metamaterials show interesting properties that are not found in nature. These properties are counterintuitive and difficult to understand for the students. This work describes a series of virtual experiments that were carried out by means of an extension of the FDTD technique for modeling metamaterials. The result of the simulations was recorded and a collection of videos developed as a supplementary tool for teaching at advanced undergraduate and graduate levels. The objective is to help the student to understand the interaction of electromagnetic waves with these media by means of the visualization of the evolution in time of the physical phenomena.