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Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics

Spin Hall effect of light via weak measurements: Sharp and smooth index variations

Onur Hosten, Paul G. Kwiat

Published May 4, 2008• 0 citations
Publisher

Abstract

Using ldquoquantum weak-measurementsrdquo as a coherent enhancement technique for small signals, we have measured the recently proposed ldquospin Hall effectrdquo of light at an air-glass interface, and are working on the smoothly varying refractive-index case.
DOI
10.1109/qels.2008.4552929

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We have detected a spin-dependent displacement perpendicular to the refractive index gradient for photons passing through an air-glass interface. The effect is the photonic version of the spin Hall effect in electronic systems, indicating the universality of the effect for particles of different nature. Treating the effect as a weak measurement of the spin projection of the photons, we used a preselection and postselection technique on the spin state to enhance the original displacement by nearly four orders of magnitude, attaining sensitivity to displacements of approximately 1 angstrom. The spin Hall effect can be used for manipulating photonic angular momentum states, and the measurement technique holds promise for precision metrology.
Since its first introduction over twenty years ago, weak measurements have gradually became an useful metrology tool in the laboratory. Due to its desirable amplification effect, a small physical variable can be detected with weak measurements. Spin splitting of light, which stems from the interaction between the spin and orbital angular momentum in optical reflection or refraction at the interface of mediums, is always a weak effect. However, the spin splitting of light can be detected easily with weak measurements. Remarkably, the spin splitting of light is sensitive to the physical parameter variations of system. Using the spin splitting as a probe, the physical parameter can be accurately estimated with weak measurements. Here, we review some of our works on precision metrology with weak measurements using the spin splitting of light as a probe, such as estimation of the magneto-optical constant of a magnetic film, determination of the focused beam waist, and measurement of the polarization state of light.
Geometric Spin Hall effect of light (SHEL) has attracted considerable attention because of the universality of this variant of the spin Hall shift and its independence on the light-matter interactions and materials properties. However, the magnitude of geometric SHEL is typically very small, in the sub-wavelength domain, making it difficult for direct experimental observation. Here, we have applied weak measurement schemes to amplify and faithfully observe the geometric SHEL. In our experiment, the input beam is pre-selected in linear polarization basis (p- or slinear polarization) and post selections are done at nearly orthogonal linear polarizations (small angle ϵ away from the exact orthogonal).This results in weak value amplification (~cotϵ) of the resulting shift of the beam centroid. Moreover, this process also leads to selective conversion of spatial to angular nature of geometric SHEL, which along with the weak value amplification leads to manifold amplification of the resulting SHEL, enabling its reliable experimental detection. A key feature of our weak measurement scheme is that both the weak perturbation (tiny geometric SHEL) and the post selection are done simultaneously by a single optical element, namely, a linear polarizer. The dependence of the weak value of the geometric SHEL on the pre and the post selection of polarization states in both linear and elliptical basis were also investigated in details. The specifics of the different weak measurement schemes, various intriguing experimental manifestations of the weak value amplified geometric SHEL, their analysis / interpretation via polarization operator based treatment of weak measurements is presented here.
From its beginning, the measurement of optical rotation (OR) is crucial for the analysis of chiral molecules in many fields. However, the precision measurement of a weak OR signal with conventional setup remains elusive. In this Letter, we experimentally propose a precision method to determine the OR of glucose and fructose based on weak measurements. By using the spin Hall effect of light (SHEL) as a probe, a nonlinear weak measurements model is established that is applicable beyond the Aharonov-Albert-Vaidman (AAV) limit. Due to the high sensitivity of weak measurements amplification with respect to the OR, a tremendous variation of the amplified beam displacement of the SHEL is observed, while the concentration of glucose and fructose is slightly changed.
The basics of weak measurement and its various applications are discussed here. The optical analogue of weak measurement. which was predicted by E C G Sudarshan was also demonstrated with the experimental results. The optical activity of chiral molecules is also calculated with the help of weak measurement. We also demonstrate simultaneous weak value amplification of both the angular GH and the IF shifts in partial reflection of a fundamental Gaussian beam at planar dielectric interfaces. We employ pre and post selection schemes with appropriate linear polarization basis states for simultaneous weak measurements and amplification of both of these shifts.We also studied these GH and IF shifts for higher order beams (for example Vortex beams)and how its get coupled. Geometric Hall effect of light is also studied with the help of weak measurement and we get the expected nature according to the theory.
How do you measure a transverse shift of a light beam to within a nanometer? Recently, physicists predicted (1) that light could experience such a shift similar to what happens to electrical currents in semiconductors through the spin Hall effect (2–4). On page 787 of this issue, Hosten and Kwiat (5) use “weak measurement,” a controversial procedure from the foundations of quantum mechanics, to amplify this spin Hall effect in light (SHEL) rather than detecting it directly. In their experiment, they boost the tiny shift by a factor of 10,000, detecting it for the first time and characterizing it at the angstrom scale. This realizes one of the long-standing promises of weak measurement and demonstrates its potential in precision measurements.