Suppression of scattering for small dielectric particles: anapole mode and invisibility

We reveal that an isotropic, homogeneous, subwavelength particle with high refractive index can produce ultra-small total scattering. This effect, which follows from the inhibition of the electric dipole radiation, can be identified as a Fano resonance in the scattering efficiency and is associated with the excitation of an anapole mode in the particle. This anapole mode is non-radiative and emerges from the destructive interference of electric and toroidal dipoles. The invisibility effect could be useful for the design of highly transparent optical materials. This article is part of the themed issue 'New horizons for nanophotonics'.