Related papers: Measuring the visual angle of polarization-related…
The spin angular momentum in an elliptically polarized beam of light plays several noteworthy roles in optical traps. It contributes to the linear momentum density in a non-uniform beam, and thus to the radiation pressure exerted on…
Artificial nanostructures enable fine control of electromagnetic fields at the nanoscale, a possibility that has recently been extended to the interaction between polarised light and chiral matter. The theoretical description of such…
In this letter, we exploit the polarization property of light to investigate the Angstroem exponent describing the wavelength dependence of optical backscatter between two wavelengths. Where previous interpretation of Angstroem exponent was…
We investigate the possibility of determining whether microlensing objects towards the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) are in a Galactic thick disc, or are in a Galactic halo, by using parallax measurements with an Earth-radius scale baseline.…
We present detailed instructions for constructing and operating an apparatus to produce and detect polarization-entangled photons. The source operates by type-I spontaneous parametric downconversion in a two-crystal geometry. Photons are…
Materials of which the optical response is determined by their structure are of much interest both for their fundamental properties and applications. Examples range from simple gratings to photonic crystals. Obtaining control over the…
Although complex, hierarchical nanoscale geometries with tailored degrees of disorder are commonly found in biological systems, few simple self-assembly routes to fabricating synthetic analogues have been identified. We present two…
Photosynthetic eukaryotes show a remarkable variability in photosynthesis, including large differences in light harvesting proteins and pigment composition. In vivo circular spectropolarimetry enables us to probe the molecular architecture…
Microlensing has established itself as a powerful new method for the detection of baryonic dark matter in the Galaxy. The theory of microlensing is sketched and its similarity with the optical effect of twinkling is explained. The bulk of…
Disordered packings of colloidal spheres show angle-independent structural color when the particles are on the scale of the wavelength of visible light. Previous work has shown that the positions of the peaks in the reflectance spectra can…
We present a technique to determine the polarization properties of a telescope through observations of spectral lines that have no intrinsic linear polarization signals. For such spectral lines, any observed linear polarization must be…
We interpret the relation between the polarizing efficiency $P_{\max}/E(B-V)$ and the wavelength of the maximum polarization $\lambda_{\max}$ observed for 17 objects (including 243 stars) separated into two groups: "dark clouds" and "open…
In vectorial diffraction theory, tight focusing of a linearly polarized laser beam produces an anisotropic field distribution around the focal plane. We present a numerical investigation of the electromagnetic field distribution of a…
Photonic crystals with a sufficiently high refractive index contrast display partial or full band gaps. However, imperfections in the metamaterial cause light scattering and extinction of the interfering propagating waves. Positive as well…
We apply spin-squeezing techniques to identify and quantify highly multi-partite photonic entanglement in polarization-squeezed light. We consider a practical single-mode scenario, and find that Wineland-criterion polarization squeezing…
This paper investigates how the measurement of geometrical features of structures obtained from ballistic deposition of objects with complex shapes, particularly neuronal cells, can be used for characterization and analysis of the shapes…
The numerical calculation of optical properties (extinction, absorption, scattering and polarisation efficiencies) is often time-consuming for non-spherical and inhomogeneous particles. Where possible analytical methods are therefore to be…
We theoretically investigate into the effects of the incidence angles in light transmission of cholesteric liquid crystal two-layer sandwich structures with twist defects created by rotation of the one layer about the helical axis.The…
We study the focusing of light through random photonic materials using wavefront shaping. We explore a novel approach namely binary amplitude modulation. To this end, the light incident to a random photonic medium is spatially divided into…
A photoelastic material will reveal its internal stresses when observed through polarizing filters. This eye-catching property has enlightened our understanding of granular materials for over half a century, whether in the service of art,…