Challenges in Orbital Angular Momentum

站在光束的路上，它既可以把你撞倒，也可以让你打转。100多年前，麦克斯韦提出了描述光如何在空间中传播的基本方程。在这些方程式中隐含的是光携带着能量和动量，但是尽管它的能量在我们的日常生活中是显而易见的，但它的动量却不是。然而，在显微镜下照射光线，可以看到它的动量移动或捕获微观物体。圆偏振光也带有自旋角动量，使微观物体自旋。尽管对光的研究一直是现代物理学发展的核心，但直到20世纪90年代，人们才意识到，一种全新的光束可以简单地在实验室里制造出来。只需在激光笔发出的光束中插入一个改进的衍射光栅，就能产生一束携带轨道角动量的光束。OAM的效果可能比自旋本身所产生的效果大100倍——允许我们之前对微观物体的光学旋转的演示：一个光学扳手！除了微观旋转，轨道角动量（OAM）为光学科学开辟了新的机会。我们希望释放OAM在经典科学和量子科学中的潜力。然而，基本的问题仍然与潜在的物理和技术限制有关。本研究计划将解决这些限制，每一个都是各自的科学成就，但共同为OAM铺平道路，使显微镜的改进形式成为可能。- OAM作为构建快速加密网络的安全基础。- OAM是新型光学传感器的核心。我们受益于挑剔的朋友，并将成立一个国际指导小组，每年与团队会面。我们得到了两位世界顶尖科学家的同意加入这个小组。为了最大限度地扩大我们的影响，该小组还将包括一位来自苏格兰企业的实业家，并由格拉斯哥大学KT委员会主席召集。该小组将同意pi，高影响力期刊出版物的定量目标，在学术和工业活动中邀请的会谈，最重要的是，开发目标（专利，许可，咨询）。

Stand in the way of a light beam and it could both knock you over and send you in a twirl. Over 100 years ago Maxwell worked out the fundamental equations describing how light propagates through space. Embedded within these equations is that light carries both energy and momentum, but although its energy is apparent in our everyday lives, its momentum is not. However, shine light down a microscope and its momentum can be seen to move, or trap, microscopic objects. Circularly polarized light also carries a Spin Angular Momentum causing the microscopic object to spin. Although the study of light has been central to the development of modern physics, it was not until the 1990's that it was realized that a whole new class of light beam could be created simply in the laboratory. Inserting a modified diffraction grating in the beam from a laser pointer is all that is required to create a light beam carrying Orbital Angular Momentum. The effect of OAM can be 100's time greater than that given by the spin alone - allowing our previous demonstration of the optical rotation of microscopic objects: an optical spanner! Beyond microscopic rotations, Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) opens new opportunities across optical science.We wish to unlock the potential of OAM in both classical and quantum science. However, fundamental questions remain pertaining both to the underlying physics and technological limitations. This research programme will address these limitations, each a scientific achievement in their own right but together paving the route to:- OAM to enable an improved form of microscopy.- OAM as a secure basis on which to build a fast cryptographic network.- OAM at the heart of new types of optical sensors. We benefit from critical friends and will form an international steering panel to meet annually with the team. We have the agreement of two of the world's leading scientists to serve on this panel. To maximise our wider impact, the panel will also include an industrialist from Scottish Enterprise and be convened by the chair of the Glasgow University KT committee. The panel will agree with the PIs, quantitative targets for high-impact journal publications, invited talks at both academic and industrial events and, most importantly, targets for exploitation (patents, license, consultancy).