Extraordinarily Large Optical Cross Section for Localized Single Nanoresonator

Phys Rev Lett. 2015 Jul 10;115(2):023903. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.115.023903. Epub 2015 Jul 10.

Abstract

Using an optical nanoresonator to realize extreme concentration of light at subwavelength nanoscale dimensions is of both fundamental and practical significance. Unfortunately, the optical cross section of an isotropic nanoresonator is determined by the resonant wavelength, which unfavorably limits the highest concentration ratio. Here we show that the cross section of a localized subwavelength resonator can be drastically enhanced by orders of magnitude. A single microscopic nanoresonator could exhibit a macroscopic optical cross section. We further show that the enhancement can be implemented in simple dielectric structures that are readily compatible with optoelectronic integration. The giant optical cross section of a nano-object provides a versatile platform to create extremely strong light-matter interactions at the nanoscale.