Purcell effect in chiral environments: A macroscopic QED perspective

The Purcell effect describes the modification of the spontaneous decay rate in the presence of electromagnetic media and bodies. In this work, we shed light on the dependencies and magnitude of this effect for chiral materials. Using the framework of macroscopic quantum electrodynamics and Fermi's Golden Rule, we study a chiral bulk medium with and without local-field corrections, an idealized chiral mirror and a chiral surface. The results imply that the chiral effect is greatest for large transition frequencies, molecules with large optical rotatory strength and media with a strong cross-susceptibility. In the case of a half space, short distances from the molecule to the interface additionally enhance the effect.