Observation of the rotational Doppler shift of a white-light, orbital-angular-momentum-carrying beam backscattered from a rotating body

Lavery, M. P. J. , Barnett, S. M. , Speirits, F. C. and Padgett, M. J. (2014) Observation of the rotational Doppler shift of a white-light, orbital-angular-momentum-carrying beam backscattered from a rotating body. Optica, 1(1), pp. 1-4. (doi: 10.1364/OPTICA.1.000001)

[img]
Preview
Text
95385.pdf - Published Version

1MB

Publisher's URL: http://dx.doi.org/10.1364/OPTICA.1.000001

Abstract

We observe the rotational Doppler shift of an orbital angular momentum (OAM)-carrying white-light beam after it is backscattered from a rotating object. Unlike the well known linear shift, this rotational shift is independent of the optical frequency, and hence each spectral component of the scattered light is shifted by the same value. Consequently, even a white-light source can give rise to a single-valued frequency shift. We show that the size of this shift is proportional to the OAM of the light and that superpositions of different OAM states give rise to multiple frequency sidebands. The observability of this rotational shift for white-light illumination highlights the potential for the rotational Doppler effect to form the basis of a rotational sensor for the remote detection of spinning objects.

Item Type:Articles
Status:Published
Refereed:Yes
Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID:Lavery, Professor Martin and Padgett, Professor Miles and Speirits, Dr Fiona and Barnett, Professor Stephen
Authors: Lavery, M. P. J., Barnett, S. M., Speirits, F. C., and Padgett, M. J.
College/School:College of Science and Engineering > School of Physics and Astronomy
Journal Name:Optica
Publisher:The Optical Society
ISSN:2334-2536
Copyright Holders:Copyright © 2014 The Authors
First Published:First published in Optica 1(1):1-4
Publisher Policy:Reproduced in accordance with the copyright policy of the publisher.

University Staff: Request a correction | Enlighten Editors: Update this record

Project CodeAward NoProject NamePrincipal InvestigatorFunder's NameFunder RefLead Dept
549871Challenges in Orbital Angular MomentumMiles PadgettEngineering & Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC)EP/I012451/1P&A - PHYSICS & ASTRONOMY