Axions, Surface States, and the Post Constraint in Electromagnetics

Abstract

After formulating the frequency-domain Maxwell equations for a homogeneous, linear, bianisotropic material occupying a bounded region, we found that the axionic piece vanishes from both the differential equations valid in the region and the boundary conditions, thereby vindicating the Post constraint. Our analysis indicates that characteristic effects that may be observed experimentally with magnetoelectric materials are not the consequences of the axionic piece but of an admittance that describes surface states.