Broken time reversal of light interaction with planar chiral nanostructures

We report unambiguous experimental evidence of broken time-reversal symmetry for the interaction of light with an artificial nonmagnetic material. Polarized color images of planar chiral gold-on-silicon nanostructures consisting of arrays of gammadions show intriguing and unusual symmetry: structure...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inPhysical review letters Vol. 91; no. 24; p. 247404
Main Authors Schwanecke, A S, Krasavin, A, Bagnall, D M, Potts, A, Zayats, A V, Zheludev, N I
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States 12.12.2003
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Summary:We report unambiguous experimental evidence of broken time-reversal symmetry for the interaction of light with an artificial nonmagnetic material. Polarized color images of planar chiral gold-on-silicon nanostructures consisting of arrays of gammadions show intriguing and unusual symmetry: structures, which are geometrically mirror images, lose their mirror symmetry in polarized light. The symmetry of images can be described only in terms of antisymmetry (black-and-white symmetry) appropriate to a time-odd process. The effect results from a transverse chiral nonlocal electromagnetic response of the structure and has some striking resemblance with the expected features of light scattering on anyon matter.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/PhysRevLett.91.247404