Optical properties of nanostructured optical materials

The optical properties of nanoscale composite materials are often quite different from the properties of the constituent materials from which the composite is constructed. The formation of composite materials thus constitutes a means for engineering new materials with desired optical properties. In this paper we review theories and models that have been devised for relating the linear and nonlinear optical properties of composite materials to those of the constituent materials and to the morphology of the composite structure, and we review experimental studies aimed at validating these models. Morphologies that are explicitly discussed include those of Maxwell Garnett and of Bruggeman, layered structures, and fractal structures.