Transverse angular momentum and geometric spin Hall effect of light.
We present a novel fundamental phenomenon occurring when a polarized beam of light is observed from a reference frame tilted with respect to the direction of propagation of the beam. This effect has a purely geometric nature and amounts to a polarization-dependent shift or split of the beam intensity distribution evaluated as the time-averaged flux of the Poynting vector across the plane of observation. We demonstrate that such a shift is unavoidable whenever the beam possesses a nonzero transverse angular momentum. This latter result has general validity and applies to arbitrary systems such as, e.g., electronic and atomic beams.
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light, Günter-Scharowsky-Strasse 1/Bau 24, 91058 Erlangen, Germany. Andrea.Aiello@mpl.mpg.de
Andrea
A
Aiello
Norbert
N
Lindlein
Christoph
C
Marquardt
Gerd
G
Leuchs