Abstract
Orbital angular momentum (OAM) of a helical beam is of great interests in the high density optical communication due to its infinite number of eigen-states. In this paper, an experimental setup is realized to the information encoding and decoding on the OAM eigen-states. A hologram designed by the iterative method is used to generate the helical beams, and a Michelson interferometer with two Porro prisms is used for the superposition of two helical beams. The experimental results of the collinear superposition of helical beams and their OAM eigen-states detection are presented.
Highlights
Orbital angular momentum (OAM) of a helical beam is related to the spiral phase distribution of the field [1,2,3,4]
The superposition of several non-diffractive beams with different OAM charges or helical beams can be realized by the phase- and amplitude-modulating hologram simulated by the spatial light modulator (SLM) [7,8,9]
In this paper we describe the generation of a set of helical beams distributed symmetrically on a ring, and realized the different superposed groups of two helical beams using a Michelson interferometer with two Porro prisms
Summary
Orbital angular momentum (OAM) of a helical beam is related to the spiral phase distribution of the field [1,2,3,4]. The OAM eigen-states, i.e. the quantum number of the helicity, can be any integer ranging from -∞ to +∞, which means a single photon may carry infinite bits of data in theory. This property suggests the potential application of the OAM in the areas of optical communication, information encryption and etc [5,6]. The superposition of several non-diffractive beams with different OAM charges or helical beams can be realized by the phase- and amplitude-modulating hologram simulated by the spatial light modulator (SLM) [7,8,9]. The modulation speed of this system is independent on the refresh rate of the SLM
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
