  Electromagnetic (EM) wave scattering by many parallel infinite cylinders is
studied asymptotically as a tends to 0, where a is the radius of the cylinders.
It is assumed that the centres of the cylinders are distributed so that their
numbers is determined by some positive function N(x). The function N(x) >= 0 is
a given continuous function. An equation for the self-consistent (limiting)
field is derived as a tends to 0. The cylinders are assumed perfectly
conducting. Formula for the effective refraction coefficient of the new medium,
obtained by embedding many thin cylinders into a given region, is derived. The
numerical results presented demonstrate the validity of the proposed approach
and its efficiency for solving the many-body scattering problems, as well as
the possibility to create media with negative refraction coefficients.
