Photonic Cyclone: spatiotemporal optical vortex with controllable transverse orbital angular momentum

TL;DR

This paper introduces a simple method to generate a 3D optical wave packet with controllable transverse orbital angular momentum, resembling a cyclone, with potential for novel applications across various spectra.

Contribution

It presents a novel technique to produce a controllable transverse orbital angular momentum in a spatiotemporal vortex, expanding the possibilities for optical manipulation and applications.

Findings

Generated a 3D optical vortex with controllable transverse OAM

Demonstrated scalability of the transverse OAM magnitude

Potential for broad-spectrum and wave field applications

Abstract

Today, it is well known that light possesses a linear momentum which is along the propagation direction. Besides, scientists also discovered that light can possess an angular momentum (AM), a spin angular momentum (SAM) associated with circular polarization and an orbital angular momentum (OAM) owing to the azimuthally dependent phase. Even though such angular momenta are longitudinal in general, a SAM transverse to the propagation has opened up a variety of key applications [1]. In contrast, investigations of the transverse OAM are quite rare due to its complex nature. Here we demonstrate a simple method to generate a three dimensional (3D) optical wave packet with a controllable purely transverse OAM. Such a wave packet is a spatiotemporal (ST) vortex, which resembles an advancing cyclone, with optical energy flowing in the spatial and temporal dimension. Contrary to the transverse SAM, the magnitude of the transverse OAM carried by the photonic cyclone is scalable to a larger value by simple adjustments. Since the ST vortex carries a controllable OAM in the unique transverse dimension, it has a strong potential for novel applications that may not be possible otherwise. The scheme reported here can be readily adapted for the other spectra regime and different wave fields, opening tremendous opportunities for the study and applications of ST vortex in much broader scopes.