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Optical orbital angular momentum analogy to the Stern–Gerlach experiment

Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: Symmetry breaking has been shown to reveal interesting phenomena in physical systems. A notable example is the fundamental work of Otto Stern and Walther Gerlach [Stern and Zerlach, Z. Physik9, 349 (1922)10.1007/BF01326983] nearly 100 years ago demonstrating a spin angular momentum (SAM) deflection that differed from classical theory. Here we use non-separable states of SAM and orbital angular momentum (OAM), known as vector vortex modes, to demonstrate how a classical optics analogy can be used to reveal this non-separability, reminiscent of the work carried out by Stern and Gerlach. We show that by implementing a polarization insensitive device to measure the OAM, the SAM states can be deflected to spatially resolved positions.
DOI: 10.1364/ol.534320
Authors: Angela Dudley, Bereneice Sephton, Thien-An Nguyen, Nathan S. Brady, Sergei Slussarenko, Robert R. Alfano, Andrew Forbes, Miles J. Padgett, Giovanni Milione, Martin P. J. Lavery
Institutions: University of Naples Federico II, City College of New York, City University of New York, University of Nebraska at Kearney, Griffith University, NEC (United States)
Language: English
Open Access status: hybrid
Awards: G1942431642, G1946283166, G3800186781, G4054628658, G6973823989, G8223772534
OpenAlex ID: W4401885846
FWCI: 0.159
Cites: 36
Cited by: 1
Related to: 10