Performance analysis of modulating retro-reflector link based on orbital angular momentum coding in underwater channels

Light with an optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) has attracted an increasing amount of interest and has found its way into many disciplines ranging from optical trapping, edge-enhanced microscopy, high-speed optical communication, and secure quantum teleportation to spin-orbital coupling. In a variety of OAM-involved applications, it is crucial to discern different OAM states with high fidelity. In the current paper, we review the latest research progress on OAM detection with micro- and nano-optical structures that are based on plasmonics, photonic integrated circuits (PICs), and liquid crystal devices. These innovative OAM sorters are promising to ultimately achieve the miniaturization and integration of high-fidelity OAM detectors and inspire numerous applications that harness the intriguing properties of the twisted light.

The identification of orbital angular momentum (OAM) as a fundamental property of a beam of light nearly 25 years ago has led to an extensive body of research around this topic. The possibility that single photons can carry OAM has made this degree of freedom an ideal candidate for the investigation of complex quantum phenomena and their applications. Research in this direction has ranged from experiments on complex forms of quantum entanglement to the interaction between light and quantum states of matter. Furthermore, the use of OAM in quantum information has generated a lot of excitement, as it allows for encoding large amounts of information on a single photon. Here, we explain the intuition that led to the first quantum experiment with OAM 15 years ago. We continue by reviewing some key experiments investigating fundamental questions on photonic OAM and the first steps to applying these properties in novel quantum protocols. At the end, we identify several interesting open questions that could form the subject of future investigations with OAM.This article is part of the themed issue 'Optical orbital angular momentum'.

The desire to increase the amount of information that can be encoded onto a single photon has driven research into many areas of optics. One such area is optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) [1]. These beams have helical phasefronts and carry an orbital angular momentum of mbar per photon, where the integer m is unbounded, giving a large state space in which to encode information. We recently developed a telescope system comprising two bespoke refractive optical elements to transform OAM states into transverse momentum states [2]. This is achieved by mapping the azimuthal position of the input plane to the lateral position in the output [3]. A mapping of this type transforms a set of concentric rings at the input plane into a set of parallel lines in the output plane. A lens can then separate the resulting transverse momentum states into specified lateral positions, allowing for the efficient measurement of multiple OAM states simultaneously. Separating OAM states in this way presents an opportunity for this larger alphabet to improve the data capacity of a free space link and has potential application in both the classical and quantum regimes. We will present our latest design, increasing the bandwidth of measurable states to over 50 OAM modes. In such a system we study the crosstalk introduced by a thin phase turbulence, showing that turbulence similarly degrades the purity of all the modes within this range.

Multiplexing and demultiplexing of optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) are critical operations in mode-division multiplexing communications. Traditional Dammann gratings, spiral phase planes, and optical geometric transformations are regarded as convenient methods for OAM mode (de)multiplexing. However, crosstalk between the different modes and the difficulty of mode multiplexing greatly limit their application to mode-division multiplexing communications. Here, using a set of inversely-designed phase planes, we demonstrate an OAM (de)multiplexer based on multiphase plane light conversion that can enable perfect OAM multiplexing communication. The sorted patterns are Gaussian-like and can be coupled easily into single-mode fiber arrays. Inputs from the fiber array are turned into coaxial OAM modes after the phase planes. OAM mode crosstalk generated by the multiplexer is less than − 20 dB , with insertion loss of less than 2.6 dB. OAM modes are sorted by the demultiplexer with mode crosstalk below − 10 dB , and the sorting results are coupled to the fiber array. OAM modes carrying 10 Gbit/s on–off keying signals were transmitted in a 5 km few-mode fiber. The measured bit-error-rate curves have power penalties of less than 10 dB. The proposed configuration is highly efficient and convenient and will be beneficial for potential applications in quantum information, information processing, and optical communications.

A definitive statement of the model used to describe orbital angular momentum is essentially now available. Its early history, and the interaction of those who played key roles in its development over 20 years ago in its development, is outlined in this Memoir.This article is part of the themed issue 'Optical orbital angular momentum'.

Light with a helical phase has had an impact on optical imaging, pushing the limits of resolution or sensitivity. Here, special emphasis will be given to classical light microscopy of phase samples and to Fourier filtering techniques with a helical phase profile, such as the spiral phase contrast technique in its many variants and areas of application.This article is part of the themed issue 'Optical orbital angular momentum'.

Magnet-free optical nonreciprocity has significant applications in quantum communication, quantum networks, and optical information processing. In this research, considering a degenerate two-level thermal atomic system with the Doppler effect of thermal atoms, the nonreciprocal amplification (NRA) of dual-path degenerate four-wave mixing (FWM) signals is achieved under the action of a co-propagating pumping field. On this basis, spatially multiplexed multiple FWM processes are formed by introducing another counter-propagating pumping field, thereby achieving the reciprocal amplification (RA) of the dual-channel FWM signals. Furthermore, by using multiple sets of spiral phase plates to load spiral phases on the signal light and the pumping light respectively, higher-order Laguerre-Gaussian vortex beams carrying different optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) are generated and participate in the FWM process, achieving the transfer of the OAM of the pumping light to the amplified FWM fields. Simultaneously, using the Mach-Zehnder interferometer, the conservation characteristics of the OAM of each FWM signal in the NRA-RA conversion are further analyzed. Furthermore, experimental results demonstrate that in the multiple FWM process induced by a pair of counter-propagating pump fields, the OAM of the amplified FWM signal in each channel varies with that of the pump field. However, the overall process maintains the OAM conservation. This study provides a feasible solution for expanding the channel capacity using OAM based on NRA-RA system, showing that the OAM has potential application prospects in achieving high-capacity optical communication and multi-channel signal processing.

Mirror-symmetric microring resonators perturbed by periodically spaced scatterers induce symmetric optical vortex superimposition states. In this letter, we theoretically and numerically show that a broken mirror symmetric resonator can induce asymmetric optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) superimposition states. The asymmetric OAM behaviour is due to the chiral and non-orthogonal resonator modes at exceptional point. Potential applications of the OAM beam emission behavior could include information processing and particle micromanipulation with functionality-switching capabilities.

Spin Hall effect, one of the cornerstones in spintronics refers to the emergence of an imbalance in the spin density transverse to a charge flow in a sample under voltage bias. This study points to a novel way for an ultrafast generation and tuning of a unidirectional nonlinear spin Hall current by means of subpicosecond laser pulses of optical vortices. When interacting with matter, the optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) carried by the vortex and quantified by its topological charge is transferred to the charge carriers. The residual spin-orbital coupling in the sample together with confinement effects allow exploiting the absorbed optical OAM for spatio-temporally controlling the spin channels. Both the non-linear spin Hall current and the dynamical spin Hall angle increase for a higher optical topological charge. The reason is the transfer of a higher amount of OAM and the enhancement of the effective spin-orbit interaction strength. No bias voltage is needed. We demonstrate that the spin Hall current can be all-optically generated in an open circuit geometry for ring-structured samples. These results follow from a full-fledged propagation of the spin-dependent quantum dynamics on a time-space grid coupled to the phononic environment. The findings point to a versatile and controllable tool for the ultrafast generation of spin accumulations with a variety of applications such as a source for ultrafast spin transfer torque and charge and spin current pulse emitter.

Optical orbital angular momentum (OAM), as an important degree of freedom of light, has been attracting extensive attention due to its intrinsic feature of the natural discrete infinite dimension. Manipulation of OAM spectra is crucial for many impressive applications from classical to quantum realms, in particular, nonlinear manipulation of OAM spectra. Here, we realized the nonlinear manipulation of OAM spectra by using the simultaneous second- and third-harmonic generation in a single nonlinear crystal of quasi-periodically poled potassium titanyl phosphate, for fundamental waves with a variety of OAM spectra, especially for customized OAM spectra of the second and third harmonics. The experimental results confirmed the theoretical predictions. Our approach not only provides a way to manipulate OAM spectra at shorter wavelengths that are hard to be directly generated but also may find applications toward multiplexing in classical optics and high-dimensional information processing in quantum optics.

We experimentally demonstrate the efficient nonlinear optical conversion of an optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) state through quasi-phase-matching (QPM) technique in a periodically poled LiTaO 3 (PPLT) crystal.

The generation and manipulation of optical vortex beams are essential to optical sensing, communication, and processing applications. The integrated on‐chip generation of vortex beams by the optical phased array (OPA) paves the way of compact, adjustable, and robust optical systems. To address the limited field‐of‐view challenge in 2D architecture OPAs, this work proposes an innovative far‐field envelope reconstruction strategy and implements a grating‐lobe‐free 2D OPA with a bicyclic configuration on a silicon integrated photonic platform. The fabricated device realizes a side‐lobe suppression ratio (SLSR) of ≈11.2 dB, a main lobe full width at half‐maximum (FWHM) of roughly 0.16°, and maintains intensity fluctuations of under 3 dB across even an 80° × 60° steering range, achieving unprecedented ≈187 500 far‐field resolvable points. The high‐performance OPA chip is demonstrated to rapidly generate and steer free‐space vortex beams carrying tunable optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) by accurately calibrating the phase shift and configuring the computed voltage, which provides broad prospects for applications such as optical coherence tomography and high‐capacity optical communications.

We propose a metasurface to evaluate the polarization, chirality and orbital angular momentum of the incident light. By employing the weak measurement mechanism, an aperture with a set orientation is utilized to filter the incident polarization components and enhance the polarization contrast. We demonstrate theoretically and numerically that the mechanism can detect the weak quantities of the incident field by evaluating the orientation angle of the azimuthal polarized component in the back focal plane or imaging plane. Using the aperture as the cell of metasurface, the enhancement can also be realized in the imaging plane. Moreover, by constructing a phase gradient through a couple of mirror symmetric apertures in the cell, the metasurface can produce orbit induced rotation in the imaging plane. Our results could find wide application in the polarization, chirality detection and orbital angular momentum communications.

Nanocavities inscribed in a gold thin film are optimized and designed to form a metasurface. We demonstrate both numerically and experimentally the creation of surface plasmon (SP) vortex carrying orbital angular momentum in the metasurface under linearly polarized optical excitation that carries no optical angular momentum. Moreover, depending on the orientation of the exciting linearly polarized light, we show that the metasurface is capable of providing dynamic switching between SP vortex formation or SP subwavelength focusing. The resulting SP intensities are experimentally measured using a near-field scanning optical microscope and are found in excellent quantitative agreements as compared to the numerical results.

A new polar lens phase mask design is proposed for sorting optical orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexed modes and is shown to be physically realizable as a silicon nanopillar metasurface.