Tunable, anomalous Mie scattering using spatial coherence

We demonstrate that a J 0-Bessel-correlated beam that is incident on a homogeneous sphere produces a highly unusual distribution of the scattered field, with the maximum no longer occurring in the forward direction. Such a beam can be easily generated using a spatially incoherent, annular source. Moreover, the direction of maximal scattering can be shifted by changing the spatial coherence length. In this process, the total power that is scattered remains constant. This new tool to control scattering directionality may be used to steer the scattered field away from the forward direction and selectively address detectors situated at different angles.