On the link between mean square-radii and high-order toroidal moments

Abstract

Multipole expansions of the source play an important role in a broad range of disciplines in modern physics, ranging from the description of exotic states of matter to the design of nanoantennas in photonics. Within the context of the latter, toroidal multipoles, a third group of multipoles complementing the well-known electric and magnetic ones, have been widely investigated since they lead to the formation of non-radiating sources. In the last years, however, the photonics community has brought to light the existence of a fourth type of multipoles that is commonly overlooked. Currently, different groups have provided different mathematical expressions to describe such sources, and they have been coined with different names; on the one hand mean-square radii, and on the other hand, as high order toroidal moments. Despite their clear physical similarity, a formal relation between the two has not yet been established. While explicit formulas for both types have been derived, they are not expressed in the same basis, and therefore it is not possible to draw a clear physical connection between them. In this contribution, we will bridge this gap and rigorously derive the connection between the two representations, taking as an example the cases of the nth order mean square radius of the electric dipole and the nth order electric toroidal dipole. Our results conclusively show that both types of representations are exactly equivalent up to a prefactor.