Enhanced Chiral Mie Scattering by a Dielectric Sphere within a Superchiral Light Field

A superchiral field, which can generate a larger chiral signal than circularly polarized light, is a promising mechanism to improve the capability to characterize chiral objects. In this paper, Mie scattering by a chiral sphere is analyzed based on the T-matrix method. The chiral signal by circularly polarized light can be obviously enhanced due to the Mie resonances. By employing superchiral light illumination, the chiral signal is further enhanced by 46.8% at the resonance frequency. The distribution of the light field inside the sphere is calculated to explain the enhancement mechanism. The study shows that a dielectric sphere can be used as an excellent platform to study the chiroptical effects at the nanoscale.