Graph explorer

Hyperbolic blackbody

The blackbody theory is revisited in the case of thermal electromagnetic fields inside uniaxial anisotropic media in thermal equilibrium with a heat bath. When these media are hyperbolic, we show that the spectral energy density of these fields radically differs from that predicted by Planck's blackbody theory. We demonstrate that the maximum of their spectral energy density is shifted towards frequencies smaller than Wien's frequency making these media apparently colder. Finally, we derive Stefan-Boltzmann's law for hyperbolic media which becomes a quadratic function of the heat bath temperature.