Landau levels and states of electrons in a magnetic field are fundamental quantum entities underlying the quantum-Hall and related effects in condensed matter physics. However, the real-space properties and observation of Landau wave functions remain
elusive. Here we report the first real-space observation of Landau states and the internal rotational dynamics of free electrons. States with different quantum numbers are produced using nanometer-size electron vortex beams, with a radius chosen to match the waist of the Landau states, in a quasi-uniform magnetic field. Scanning the beams along the propagation direction, we reconstruct the rotational dynamics of the Landau wave functions with angular frequency ~100 GHz. We observe that Landau modes with different azimuthal quantum numbers belong to three classes, which are characterized by rotations with zero, Larmor, and cyclotron frequencies, respectively. This is in sharp contrast to the uniform cyclotron rotation of classical electrons, and in perfect agreement with recent theoretical predictions.
We examine, both experimentally and theoretically, an interaction of tightly focused polarized light with a slit on a metal surface supporting plasmon-polariton modes. Remarkably, this simple system can be highly sensitive to the polarization of the
incident light and offers a perfect quantum-weak-measurement tool with a built-in post-selection in the plasmon-polariton mode. We observe the plasmonic spin Hall effect in both coordinate and momentum spaces which is interpreted as weak measurements of the helicity of light with real and imaginary weak values determined by the input polarization. Our experiment combines advantages of (i) quantum weak measurements, (ii) near-field plasmonic systems, and (iii) high-numerical aperture microscopy in employing spin-orbit interaction of light and probing light chirality.
We give an exact self-consistent operator description of the spin and orbital angular momenta, position, and spin-orbit interactions of nonparaxial light in free space. Both quantum-operator formalism and classical energy-flow approach are presented.
We apply the general theory to symmetric and asymmetric Bessel beams exhibiting spin- and orbital-dependent intensity profiles. The exact wave solutions are clearly interpreted in terms of the Berry phases, quantization of caustics, and Hall effects of light, which can be readily observed experimentally.
We study wave transmission through one-dimensional random nonlinear structures and predict a novel effect resulting from an interplay of nonlinearity and disorder. We reveal that, while weak nonlinearity does not change the typical exponentially smal
l transmission in the regime of the Anderson localization, it affects dramatically the disorder-induced localized states excited inside the medium leading to {em bistable} and {em nonreciprocal} resonant transmission. Our numerical modelling shows an excellent agreement with theoretical predictions based on the concept of a high-Q resonator associated with each localized state. This offers a new way of all-optical light control employing statistically-homogeneous random media without regular cavities.
We describe an effective resonant interaction between two localized wave modes of different nature: a plasmon-polariton at a metal surface and a self-focusing beam (spatial soliton) in a non-linear dielectric medium. Propagating in the same direction
, they represent an exotic coupled-waveguide system, where the resonant interaction is controlled by the soliton amplitude. This non-linear system manifests hybridized plasmon-soliton eigenmodes, mutual conversion, and non-adiabatic switching, which offer exciting opportunities for manipulation of plasmons via spatial solitons.
We study the interaction of Anderson localized states in an open 1D random system by varying the internal structure of the sample. As the frequencies of two states come close, they are transformed into multiply-peaked quasi-extended modes. Level repu
lsion is observed experimentally and explained within a model of coupled resonators. The spectral and spatial evolution of the coupled modes is described in terms of the coupling coefficient and Q-factors of resonators.
The semiclassical evolution of spinning particles has recently been re-examined in condensed matter physics, high energy physics, and optics, resulting in the prediction of the intrinsic spin Hall effect associated with the Berry phase. A fundamental
nature of this effect is related to the spin-orbit interaction and topological monopoles. Here we report a unified theory and a direct observation of two mutual phenomena: a spin-dependent deflection (the spin Hall effect) of photons and the precession of the Stokes vector along the coiled ray trajectory of classical geometrical optics. Our measurements are in perfect agreement with theoretical predictions, thereby verifying the dynamical action of the topological Berry-phase monopole in the evolution of light. These results may have promising applications in nano-optics and can be immediately extrapolated to the evolution of massless particles in a variety of physical systems.
