Phase diagram to design passive nanostructures

A phase diagram, defined by the amplitude square and phase of scattering coefficients for absorption cross-section in each individual channel, is introduced as a universal map on the electromagnetic properties for passive scatterers. General physical bounds are naturally revealed based on the intrinsic power conservation in a passive scattering system, entailing power competitions among scattering, absorption, and extinction. Exotic scattering and absorption phenomena, from resonant scattering, invisible cloaking, coherent perfect absorber, and subwavelength superscattering can all be illustrated in this phase diagram. With electrically small core-shell scatterers as an example, we demonstrate a systematic method to design field-controllable structures based on the allowed trajectories in the phase diagram. The proposed phase diagram not only provides a simple tool to design optical devices but also promotes a deep understanding on Mie's scattering theory.