Related papers: Radiation Pressure on a Diffractive Sailcraft
The reflection of an optical wave from a metal, arising from strong interactions between the optical electric field and the free carriers of the metal, is accompanied by a phase reversal of the reflected electric field. A far less common…
Transiting planets provide a unique opportunity to study the atmospheres of extra-solar planets. Radiative hydrodynamical models of the atmosphere provide a crucial link between the physical characteristics of the atmosphere and the…
Light refracted by the planet's atmosphere is usually ignored in analysis of planetary transits. Here we show that refraction can add shoulders to the transit light curve, i.e., an increase in the observed flux, mostly just before and after…
A device consisted of a set of circular rings, the centers of which lie on an axis, behaves like a solenoid when the ratio of its radius and distance between two successive rings is greater than one. As this ratio decreases, the device…
Surface fogging is a common phenomenon that can have significant and detrimental effects on surface transparency and visibility. It affects the performance in a wide range of applications including windows, windshields, electronic displays,…
In this paper it is presented the concept and design of a new type of spacecraft that could be used to make the first manned interstellar travel. Solar one would integrate three near-term technologies, namely: compact nuclear fusion…
Reflectionless potentials following the prescription of Kay and Moses allow for total transmission of incoming waves of any kinetic energy. The optical analogue of such potentials occur as dielectric stratified media that can offer null…
We review the surface flux transport model for the evolution of magnetic flux patterns on the Sun's surface. Our underlying motivation is to understand the model's prediction of the polar field (or axial dipole) strength at the end of the…
Birefringent materials or nanostructures that introduce phase differences between two linear polarizations underpin the operation of wave plates for polarization control of light. Here we develop metasurfaces realizing a distinct class of…
Advanced solar sailing has been an increasingly attractive propulsion system for highly non-Keplerian orbits. Three new applications of the orbital angular momentum reversal (H-reversal) trajectories using solar sails are presented in this…
Optical metamaterials have the potential to control the flow of light at will which may lead to spectacular applications as the perfect lens or the cloaking device. Both of these optical elements require invariant effective material…
With a conventional lens sharpness of the image is always limited by the wavelength of light. An unconventional alternative to a lens, a slab of negative refractive index material, has the power to focus all Fourier components of a 2D…
The radiation pressure exerted by incoherent light on diverse surfaces is examined. The thermodynamic rule, first given by Carnot in 1824, describes the limitation to the amount of free energy that can be obtained from a source of thermal…
In coherent radiation sources (diffraction radiation, Smith-Purcell effect, etc.) based on relativistic electrons passing by a material radiator, the electron self-field is partly shadowed after each part of the radiator over a distance of…
Many adaptive optics systems operate by measuring the distortion of the wavefront in one wavelength range and performing the scientific observations in a second, different wavelength range. One common technique is to measure wavefront…
We report unidirectional radiation of a magnetic dipole above planar metal surface, the radiation direction can be manipulated via changing the distance between the dipole and the surface. This phenomenon is unique for the combination of…
Interstellar radar is a potential intermediate step between passive observation of exoplanets and interstellar exploratory missions. Compared to passive observation, it has the traditional advantages of radar astronomy. It can measure…
Solar system bodies that lack a significant atmosphere and significant internal magnetic fields, such as the Moon and asteroids, have been considered as passive absorbers of the solar wind. However, ion observations near the Moon by the…
Surface topography dictates the deterministic functionality of diffraction by a surface. In order to maximize the efficiency with which a diffractive optical component, such as a grating or a diffractive lens, directs light into a chosen…
An approach to hiding objects levitating or flying above a conducting sheet is suggested in this letter. The proposed device makes use of isotropic negative-refractive-index materials without extreme material parameters, and creates an…