Red light for Anderson localization

Abstract

During the last 30 years, the search for Anderson localization of light in three-dimensional (3D) disordered samples yielded a number of experimental observations that were first considered successful, then disputed by opponents, and later refuted by their authors. This includes recent results for light in TiO _2 powders that Sperling et al now show to be due to fluorescence and not to Anderson localization (2016 New J. Phys. http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/18/1/013039 18 http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/1367-2630/18/1/013039 ). The difficulty of observing Anderson localization of light in 3D may be due to a number of factors: insufficient optical contrast between the components of the disordered material, near-field effects, etc. The way to overcome these difficulties may consist in using partially ordered materials, complex structured scatterers, or clouds of cold atoms in magnetic fields.

Keywords

• Anderson localization of light
• waves in strongly scattering media
• optical properties of ‘white paints’