http://science.sciencemag.org/content/353/6296/263

"...in principle it has potential to enable the full use of the periodic table for optical applications.” Wow. Any Physics grad students looking for a topic, I'd say "surface plasmons" are about to get quite a bit more exciting ;)

"This method can enable the simultaneous emission of two photons that are “entangled,” meaning they share the same quantum state even when separated. Such generation of entangled photons is an important element in quantum devices, such as those that might be used for cryptography.

Making use of these forbidden transitions could open up the ability to tailor the optical properties of materials in ways that had not been thought possible, Rivera says. “By altering these rules” about the relationship between light and matter, “it can open new doors to reshaping the optical properties of materials.”"

'Beyond its scientific implications, he says, “this study has possible applications across multiple disciplines, since in principle it has potential to enable the full use of the periodic table for optical applications.” This could potentially lead to applications in spectroscopy and sensing devices, ultrathin solar cells, new kinds of materials to absorb solar energy, organic LEDs with higher efficiencies, and photon sources for possible quantum computing devices.'

That's great (no sarcasm!). How difficult will experimental confirmation be - or is it in the article to which I don't currently have access?

To me it sounds like some half matter/half light-like particle. Like an intermediate particle between a photon and an electron.