Related papers: All-optical spin switching under different spin co…
Strong magnetic field pulses associated with a relativistic electron bunch can imprint switching patterns in magnetic thin films that have uniaxial in-plane anisotropy. In experiments with Fe and FeCo alloy films the pattern shape reveals…
Period-averaged electromagnetic spin angular momentum is a well-established quantity for monochromatic fields, governing phenomena such as light-matter interactions with chiral particles and spin-orbit coupling effects. In contrast, the…
All-optical spin switching is a potential trailblazer for information storage and communication at an unprecedented fast rate and free of magnetic fields. However, the current wisdom is largely based on semiempirical models of effective…
We examine several retro-reflecting optical elements, each involving two reflections. In the case of a hollow metallic cone having an apex angle of 90\degree, a circularly-polarized incident beam acquires, upon reflection, the opposite spin…
The twist phase of random light represents a nontrivial two-point phase, endowing the field with orbital angular momentum. Although the mutual transition of the spin and orbit angular momenta of coherent light has been revealed, the…
A strong, far-detuned laser can shift the energy levels of an optically active quantum system via the AC Stark effect. We demonstrate that the polarization of the laser results in a spin-selective modification to the energy structure of a…
A linearly polarized Gaussian beam, carrying zero net spin angular momentum, is conventionally not expected to exert optical torque or induce rotational motion in birefringent microparticles. When such a beam is tightly focused, the…
Optical pumping is an efficient method for initializing and maintaining atomic spin ensembles in a well-defined quantum spin state. Standard optical-pumping methods orient the spins by transferring photonic angular momentum to spin…
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…
We present a general theory of spin-to-orbital angular momentum (AM) conversion of light in focusing, scattering, and imaging optical systems. Our theory employs universal geometric transformations of nonparaxial optical fields in such…
All-optical switching in a ferromagnetic spin valve is studied here using atomistic spin drift-diffusion dynamics, which includes contributions from spin pumping and superdiffusive transport. We find the switching is governed principally by…
A circularly polarized rotationally symmetric paraxial laser beams carries hbar angular momentum per photon as spin. Focussing the beam with a rotationally symmetric lens cannot change this angular momentum flux, yet the focussed beam must…
Light can carry a spin angular momentum, an intrinsic and extrinsic orbital angular momentum, associated with a circular polarization, optical vortex beams, and varying beam trajectories, respectively. The interplay between these momenta…
The superfluid--Mott-insulator phase transition of ultracold spin-1 bosons with ferromagnetic and antiferromagnetic interactions in an optical lattice is theoretically investigated. Two counterpropagating linearly polarized laser beams with…
We demonstrate the excitation, using a structured light beam carrying orbital angular momentum, of the center of mass motion of a single atom in the transverse direction to the beam's propagation. This interaction is achieved with a vortex…
Spin-orbit interactions in optics traditionally describe an influence of the polarization degree of freedom of light on its spatial properties. The most prominent example is the generation of a spin-dependent optical vortex upon focusing or…
We report the first demonstration of a direct interaction between the extraordinary transverse spin angular momentum in evanescent waves and the intrinsic orbital angular momentum in optical vortex beams. By tapping the evanescent wave of…
Contrary to the optical spin angular momentum (SAM), the role played by the orbital angular momentum (OAM) of light in magneto-optics remains largely unexplored. However, the SAM and OAM are known to be coupled when light interacts with…
Similar to light polarization that is selected by a superposition of optical basis, electron spin direction can be controlled through a superposition of spin basis. We investigate such a spin interference occurring in photoemission of the…
Interaction of spin and intrinsic orbital angular momentum of light is observed, as evidenced by length-dependent rotations of both spatial patterns and optical polarization in a cylindrically-symmetric isotropic optical fiber. Such…