Observation of Goos-H\"{a}nchen shifts in metallic reflection

TL;DR

This paper reports the first experimental observation of the Goos-H"anchen shift in metallic reflection, revealing polarization-dependent shifts and backward energy flow at metal surfaces, aligning with theoretical predictions.

Contribution

It provides the first measurement of Goos-H"anchen shifts in metals, demonstrating negative shifts for p-polarized light and confirming theoretical models.

Findings

Negative Goos-H"anchen shift for p-polarized light

Agreement between experimental results and theory

Evidence of backward energy flow at metal surface

Abstract

We report the first observation of the Goos-H$\rm \ddot{\textbf{a}}$nchen shift of a light beam incident on a metal surface. This phenomenon is particularly interesting because the Goos-H$\rm \ddot{\textbf{a}}$nchen shift for $p$ polarized light in metals is negative and much bigger than the positive shift for $s$ polarized light. The experimental result for the measured shifts as a function of the angle of incidence is in excellent agreement with theoretical predictions. In an energy-flux interpretation, our measurement shows the existence of a backward energy flow at the bare metal surface when this is excited by a $p$ polarized beam of light.