Optimized microwave illusion device

We report the design, fabrication and experimental verification of an illusion device working at microwave frequencies. A two dimensional topology optimization procedure is employed to find the binary layout of a dielectric coating that, when wrapped around a metallic cylinder, mimics the scattering from a predefined, arbitrarily-shaped dielectric object. Fabrication is carried out with 3D-printing and spatially resolved near field measurements in a waveguide configuration were performed, allowing us to map the illusion effect. Our work provides general guidelines for engineering electromagnetic illusions but can be extended to shape the near and far-field radiations using low index isotropic materials.