  We show that meta-antennas made of a composite material displaying type II
hyperbolic dispersion enable precise and controlled spectral separation of
absorption and scattering processes in the visible/near-infrared frequency
range. The experimental evidence is supported by a comprehensive theoretical
study. We demonstrate that the physical mechanism responsible for the
aforementioned effect lies in the different natures of the plasmonic modes
excited within the hyperbolic meta-antennas. We prove that it is possible to
have a pure scattering channel if an electric dipolar mode is induced, while a
pure absorption process can be obtained if a magnetic dipole is excited. Also,
by varying the geometry of the system, the relative weight of scattering and
absorption can be tuned, thus enabling an arbitrary control of the decay
channels. Importantly, both modes can be efficiently excited by direct coupling
with the far-field radiation, even when the radiative channel (scattering) is
almost totally suppressed, hence making the proposed architecture suitable for
practical applications.
