Angela Dudley

Robust interferometer for the routing of light beams carrying orbital angular momentum

We have developed an interferometer requiring only minimal angular alignment for the routing of beams carrying orbital angular momentum. The Mach–Zehnder interferometer contains a Dove prism in each arm where each has a mirror plane around which the transverse phase profile is inverted. One consequence of the inversions is that the interferometer needs no alignment. Instead the interferometer defines a unique axis about which the input beam must be coupled. Experimental results are presented for the fringe contrast, reaching a maximum value of 93±1%.

Measurement of the orbital angular momentum density of light by modal decomposition

We demonstrate a versatile method for the measurement of the orbital angular momentum (OAM) density of an optical field. By performing a modal decomposition with digital holograms, we reconstruct the full optical field from a small set of single-point intensity measurements, from which optical vortices, global OAM and OAM density can be derived. We validate the method on defined OAM-carrying beams yielding fidelities in the OAM density measurement of up to 99%, and subsequently apply the technique to unknown fields from optical fibers.

Characterization of High-Dimensional Entangled Systems via Mutually Unbiased Measurements

Mutually unbiased bases (MUBs) play a key role in many protocols in quantum science, such as quantum key distribution. However, defining MUBs for arbitrary high-dimensional systems is theoretically difficult, and measurements in such bases can be hard to implement. We show experimentally that efficient quantum state reconstruction of a high-dimensional multipartite quantum system can be performed by considering only the MUBs of the individual parts. The state spaces of the individual subsystems are always smaller than the state space of the composite system. Thus, the benefit of this method is that MUBs need to be defined for the small Hilbert spaces of the subsystems rather than for the large space of the overall system. This becomes especially relevant where the definition or measurement of MUBs for the overall system is challenging. We illustrate this approach by implementing measurements for a high-dimensional system consisting of two photons entangled in the orbital angular momentum degree of freedom, and we reconstruct the state of this system for dimensions of the individual photons from d = 2 to 5.

Quantitative measurement of the orbital angular momentum density of light

In this work we derive expressions for the orbital angular momentum (OAM) density of light, for both symmetric and nonsymmetric optical fields, that allow a direct comparison between theory and experiment. We present a simple method for measuring the OAM density in optical fields and test the approach on superimposed nondiffracting higher-order Bessel beams. The measurement technique makes use of a single spatial light modulator and a Fourier transforming lens to measure the OAM spectrum of the optical field. Quantitative values for the OAM density as a function of the radial position in the optical field are obtained for both symmetric and nonsymmetric superpositions, illustrating good agreement with the theoretical prediction.

Measuring the rotation rates of superpositions of higher-order Bessel beams

Experimental measurements are reported of the rotation rates of superpositions of higher-order Bessel beams. Digitally generated phase masks of two annular rings, were imprinted on a spatial light modulator and used to obtain superpositions of higher-order Bessel beams of the same order but of opposite topological charge. Such a superposition field carries on average zero orbital angular momentum, yet exhibits a rotation in the intensity pattern: the resultant field rotates at a constant rate about the optical axis as it propagates. The rotation rates of the generated fields were measured for different orders and for various values of the difference between the wave-vectors of the superimposing beams, and are shown to be in good agreement with that predicted theoretically.

Reconstruction of laser beam wavefronts based on mode analysis

We present the reconstruction of a laser beam wavefront from its mode spectrum and investigate in detail the impact of distinct aberrations on the mode composition. The measurement principle is presented on a Gaussian beam that is intentionally distorted by displaying defined aberrations on a spatial light modulator. The comparison of reconstructed and programmed wavefront aberrations yields excellent agreement, proving the high measurement fidelity.

Measurement of the orbital angular momentum density of Bessel beams by projection into a Laguerre–Gaussian basis

We present the measurement of the orbital angular momentum (OAM) density of Bessel beams and superpositions thereof by projection into a Laguerre-Gaussian basis. This projection is performed by an all-optical inner product measurement performed by correlation filters, from which the optical field can be retrieved in amplitude and phase. The derived OAM densities are compared to those obtained from previously stated azimuthal decomposition yielding consistent results.

Free-space communication with spatial modes of light

Current communication systems make use of polarization and wavelength multiplexing to increase transmission rates. To offer a further improvement, Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) modes (or Laguerre-Gaussian modes) provide an infinite dimensional space. In this work, Laguerre-Gaussian modes are multiplexed and de-multiplexed by means of two Spatial Light Modulators (SLMs), making use of both their azimuthal and radial degrees of freedom. Due to the orthogonality of these modes, a modal decomposition technique is employed to detect the transmitted modes. Here we demonstrate this concept by transmitting an image over a 150 meter free-space link. The free-space link is also characterized in terms of its optical turbulence.

Unveiling the radial modes in vortex beams (Conference Presentation)

We present an experimental technique to generate partially coherent vortex beams with an arbitrary azimuthal index using only a spatial light modulator. Our approach is based on digitally simulating the intrinsic randomness of broadband light passing through a spiral phase plate. We illustrate the versatility of the technique by generating partially coherent beams with different coherence lengths and orbital angular momentum content, without any moving optical device. Consequently, we study its cross-correlation function in a wavefront folding interferometer. The comparison with theoretical predictions yields excellent agreement.

Modal decomposition for measuring the orbital angular momentum density of light

We present a novel technique to measure the orbital angular momentum (OAM) density of light. The technique is based on modal decomposition, enabling the complete reconstruction of optical fields, including the reconstruction of the beams Poynting vector and the OAM density distribution. The modal decomposition is performed using a computer-generated hologram (CGH), which allows fast and accurate measurement of the mode spectrum. The CGH encodes the modes of interest, whose powers and relative phase differences are measured from the far-field diffraction pattern of the illuminating optical field with the hologram transmission function. In combination with a classical measurement of Stokes parameters, including a polarizer and a quarter-wave plate in front of the hologram, the polarization state of each mode is measured. As a consequence, any arbitrary vector field can be reconstructed, including amplitude, phase, and polarization. Having all information on the optical field, the Poynting vector and the OAM density can be calculated directly. We applied our method to beams emerging from optical fibers, which allows us to investigate arbitrary coherent superposition of fiber modes with complexly shaped intensity and polarization distributions. The excitation of certain mode mixtures is done by appropriate input coupling and using diffractive phase masks to shape the input beam and hence enhance the excitation efficiency of distinct modes. The accuracy of the achieved results is verified by comparing the reconstructed with the directly measured beam intensity, revealing excellent agreement.