Propagation of quantized fields through negative-index media

Abstract

Dielectric materials in which both the relative permittivity, ε, and the relative permeability, μ, are negative exhibit striking optical properties, which are a consequence of the fact that the effective index of refraction in such materials is negative. Most studies of the propagation of electromagnetic fields in these media have concentrated on classical fields with well-defined phases. In contrast, I use simple fully-quantized models to illustrate how some of the striking properties of negative-index media are manifested in the propagation of single, spontaneously emitted, photons. Single-photon quantum fields do not have an absolute phase, but the examples in this paper demonstrate a quantum analog of the negative phase accumulated by classical fields as photons propagate through negative-index media. The single photons also exhibit classical reflection and transmission coefficients, as well as the expected group velocity.