Related papers: Transverse angular momentum of photons
The concept of angular momentum is ubiquitous to many areas of physics. In classical mechanics, a system may possess an angular momentum which can be either transverse (e.g., in a spinning wheel) or longitudinal (e.g., for a fluidic vortex)…
Fundamental and applied concepts concerning the ability of light beams to carry a certain mechanical angular momentum with respect to the propagation axis are reviewed and discussed. Following issues are included: Historical reference;…
We review basic physics and novel types of optical angular momentum. We start with a theoretical overview of momentum and angular momentum properties of generic optical fields, and discuss methods for their experimental measurements. In…
A quantum field theory approach is put forward to generalize the concept of classical spatial light beams carrying orbital angular momentum to the single-photon level. This quantization framework is carried out both in the paraxial and…
The total angular momentum of light has received attention for its application in a variety of phenomena such as optical communication, optical forces and sensing. However, the quantum behavior including the commutation relations have been…
The transverse beam pattern, usually observed in experiment, is a result of averaging the optical-frequency oscillations of the electromagnetic field distributed over the beam cross section. An analytical criterion is derived that these…
We provide a vivid demonstration of the mechanical effect of transverse spin momentum in an optical beam in free space. This component of the Poynting momentum was previously thought to be virtual, and unmeasurable. Here, its effect is…
Recent studies show that the angular momentum, both spin and orbital, of rotating light beams possesses counter-intuitive characteristics. We present a new approach to the question of orbital angular momentum of light based on the complex…
It has been known for a long time that light carries both linear and angular momenta parallel to the direction of propagation. However, only recently it has been pointed out that beams of light, under certain conditions, may exhibit a…
Traditionally, the angular momentum of light is calculated for "bullet-like" electromagnetic wave packets, although in actual optical experiments "pencil-like" beams of light are more commonly used. The fact that a wave packet is bounded…
The quantum theory of rotation angles (S. M. Barnett and D. T. Pegg, Phys. Rev. A, 41, 3427-3425 (1990)) is generalised to non-integer values of the orbital angular momentum. This requires the introduction of an additional parameter, the…
Recently the spectacular result was derived quantum mechanically that the total angular momentum of photons in light beams with finite lateral extensions can have half-integer quantum numbers. In a circularly polarized Gauss light beam it…
Light beams carrying orbital angular momentum, such as Laguerre-Gaussian beams, give rise to the violation of the standard dipolar selection rules during the interaction with matter yielding, in general, an exchange of angular momentum…
We develop a general framework to analyze the two important and much discussed questions concerning (a) `orbital' and `spin' angular momentum carried by light and (b) the paraxial approximation of the free Maxwell system both in the…
In this work we present a model for the paraxial propagation of vector beams. Of particular importance is the appearance of a new transverse momentum term proportional to the linear polarization angle gradient imparted to the beam during…
Within monochromatic optical fields, we demonstrate the rotating-wave structured light with wave vortex carrying an intrinsic transverse orbital angular momentum orthogonal to the propagation direction of light. Remarkably, we find that…
Many atomic processes result in the emission of photons. Analysis of the properties of emitted photons, such as energy and angular distribution as well as polarization, is regarded as a powerful tool for gaining more insight into the…
Recent developments in the understanding of optical angular momentum have resulted in many demonstrations of unusual optical phenomena, such as optical beams with orbital angular momentum and transverse spinning light. Here we detail novel…
This paper analyzes the algebraic and physical properties of the spin and orbital angular momenta of light in the quantum mechanical framework. The consequences of the fact that these are not angular momenta in the quantum mechanical sense…
By means of the Helmholtz theorem on the decomposition of vector fields, the angular momentum of the classical electromagnetic field is decomposed, in a general and manifestly gauge invariant manner, into a spin component and an orbital…