Surface wave reflection from a metasurface termination

The reflection coefficient of a microwave surface wave incident at the termination of a metasurface is explored. Two different surface types are examined. One is a square array of square metallic patches on a dielectric-coated metallic ground plane, the other a Sievenpiper ‘mushroom’ array. In the latter the surface wave fields are more confined within the structure. Comparison of the measured surface-wave reflection spectra is made with that obtained from analytic theory and numerical modelling. The reflection coefficient is shown to be dependent on both the momentum mismatch between the surface wave and the freely propagating modes as well as the different field distributions of the two modes.