Spontaneous parametric downconversion of light by a dielectric nanoparticle

Abstract

In the present paper, we theoretically consider the generation of entangled photon pairs in the process of spontaneous parametric downconversion of light by a nonlinear dielectric nanoparticle. This nanoparticle is the only source of nonlinearity in the considered model. We assume that the particle is small compared to the wavelength of light so that the process is non-resonant. An intuitive theoretical description is developed for the case when the nonlinear susceptibility tensor of the material of a nanoparticle has a form of the Levi-Civita symbol. In this case, a two-photon amplitude which characterizes a spatial distribution of entangled photon pairs can be interpreted as a result of interference between two induced dipoles, both being orthogonal to the direction of polarization of the pump photon. A generation of entangled surface plasmon-polaritons by a dielectric nanoparticle located near the metal-dielectric interface is also considered.