Figure 1. Comparison of the coupled leaky mode theory (CLMT) with the well-established Mie theory.

(a) Schematic illustration of the coupling of incident light with the leaky mode of an arbitrary structure. The dashed line indicates the structure could have any arbitrary shapes. (b) The spectral absorption efficiency of a 200 nm radius a-Si nanoparticle calculated using the Mie theory (solid blue line) and the CLMT model (dash red line). The inset is a schematic illustration of the nanoparticle. (b) The solar absorption efficiency of single a-Si NPs as a function of the radius calculated using the Mie theory (solid blue line) and the CLMT model (dash red line).