Brewster-anomaly delocalization for free-electron radiation
Abstract
Localization effects are central to disordered electronics and photonics. In electronics, Anderson localization governs electron confinement in randomly perturbed lattices. Similarly, its photonic counterpart inhibits light transport via disorder -- but with a unique exception: Brewster-anomaly delocalization, where the Brewster effect prevents multiple-scattering interference and counteracts the localization. Despite extensive research in electronics and photonics separately, the intricate role of localization effects in free-electron--light interactions -- vital for lasers, accelerators, microscopy and spectroscopy, and quantum information -- remains largely unexplored. At the same time, localization effects are widely regarded as a key factor limiting the efficient coupling between free electrons and light in random media. Here we overcome this key limitation via the unconventional interplay between Brewster-anomaly delocalization and free-electron radiation. In this way, free-electron radiation can be localization-free, intense and directional even in strongly disordered, unengineered multilayers. Essentially, this delocalization-mediated free-electron radiation is remarkably invariant not only to the random-medium configuration, but also to the light frequency and the electron velocity. Our findings unlock new opportunities for particle detectors and achromatic light sources operating in easy-to-fabricate complex media at previously inaccessible frequencies.
Versions
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BibTeX
@misc{gong2026brewsteranomaly,
title = {{Brewster-anomaly delocalization for free-electron radiation}},
author = {Zheng Gong and Xiangfeng Xi and Hongsheng Chen and Owen D. Miller and Stefan Rotter and Xiao Lin},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = jul,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2607.27894},
eprint = {2607.27894},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.27894},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Brewster-anomaly delocalization for free-electron radiation
AU - Zheng Gong
AU - Xiangfeng Xi
AU - Hongsheng Chen
AU - Owen D. Miller
AU - Stefan Rotter
AU - Xiao Lin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/07/30
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2607.27894
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2607.27894
AB - Localization effects are central to disordered electronics and photonics. In electronics, Anderson localization governs electron confinement in randomly perturbed lattices. Similarly, its photonic counterpart inhibits light transport via disorder -- but with a unique exception: Brewster-anomaly delocalization, where the Brewster effect prevents multiple-scattering interference and counteracts the localization. Despite extensive research in electronics and photonics separately, the intricate role of localization effects in free-electron--light interactions -- vital for lasers, accelerators, microscopy and spectroscopy, and quantum information -- remains largely unexplored. At the same time, localization effects are widely regarded as a key factor limiting the efficient coupling between free electrons and light in random media. Here we overcome this key limitation via the unconventional interplay between Brewster-anomaly delocalization and free-electron radiation. In this way, free-electron radiation can be localization-free, intense and directional even in strongly disordered, unengineered multilayers. Essentially, this delocalization-mediated free-electron radiation is remarkably invariant not only to the random-medium configuration, but also to the light frequency and the electron velocity. Our findings unlock new opportunities for particle detectors and achromatic light sources operating in easy-to-fabricate complex media at previously inaccessible frequencies.
ER -