Observation of the geometric spin Hall effect of light

TL;DR

This paper experimentally demonstrates the geometric spin Hall effect of light, showing polarization-dependent beam displacement when transmitted through an oblique polarizer, revealing universal spin-orbit coupling features.

Contribution

It provides the first experimental observation of the geometric SHEL for transmitted light across an oblique polarizer, highlighting its material independence.

Findings

Displacement exceeds one wavelength.

Dependent on incident polarization.

Independent of polarizer material.

Abstract

The spin Hall effect of light (SHEL) is the photonic analogue of spin Hall effects occurring for charge carriers in solid-state systems. Typical examples of this intriguing phenomenon occur when a light beam refracts at an air-glass interface, or when it is projected onto an oblique plane, the latter effect being known as geometric SHEL. It amounts to a polarization-dependent displacement perpendicular to the plane of incidence. Here, we experimentally demonstrate the geometric SHEL for a light beam transmitted across an oblique polarizer. We find that the spatial intensity distribution of the transmitted beam depends on the incident state of polarization and its centroid undergoes a positional displacement exceeding one wavelength. This novel phenomenon is virtually independent from the material properties of the polarizer and, thus, reveals universal features of spin-orbit coupling.