Feasibility of using a negative-refractive-index lens to scan reinforced concrete

Abstract

An experiment has shown that a negative-refractive-index lens-based imaging system operating at 2.95 GHz can individually resolve 10 mm diameter steel rods submerged in concrete. An analytic model was developed to predict the fields at the surface of concrete as a function of reinforcement rod diameter and depth which was verified using finite-element-method simulations. The model demonstrated phenomena consistent with the experiment and showed that an NRI lens is required to image surface fields. Since the analytic model is computationally efficient compared to simulation, it offers a pathway to extract rod diameter and depth from the imagery.