Radiation pressure is associated with the momentum of light 1,2 , and it plays a crucial role in a variety of physical systems 3-6 . It is usually assumed that both the optical momentum and the radiation-pressure force are naturally aligned with the propagation direction of light, given by its wavevector. Here we report the direct observation of an extraordinary optical momentum and force directed perpendicular to the wavevector, and proportional to the optical spin (degree of circular polarization). Such an optical force was recently predicted for evanescent waves 7 and other structured fields 8 . It can be associated with the 'spin-momentum' part of the Poynting vector, introduced by Belinfante in field theory 75 years ago 9-11 . We measure this unusual transverse momentum using a femtonewton-resolution nano-cantilever immersed in an evanescent optical field above the total internal reflecting glass surface. Furthermore, the measured transverse force exhibits another polarization-dependent contribution determined by the imaginary part of the complex Poynting vector. By revealing new types of optical forces in structured fields, our findings revisit fundamental momentum properties of light and enrich optomechanics.Since Euler's studies of classical sound waves, the wave momentum has been naturally associated with the propagation direction of the wave, that is, the normal to wavefronts, or the wavevector. This idea was mathematically formulated by de Broglie for quantum matter waves: p = k, where p is the momentum, k is the wavevector and is the reduced Planck constant. In both classical and quantum cases, the wave momentum can be measured by means of the pressure force on an absorbing or scattering detector. In agreement with this, Maxwell claimed in his celebrated electromagnetic theory that 'there is a pressure in the direction normal to the waves' 1 . However, pioneering works by Poynting introduced the electromagnetic momentum density as a cross product of the electric and magnetic field vectors 2,12 :P∝ E × B. Unlike the straightforward de Broglie formula, the Poynting momentum is not obviously associated with the wavevector k. It is indeed aligned with the wavevector in the simplest case of a homogeneous plane electromagnetic wave. However, in more complicated yet typical cases of structured optical fields 13,14 (for example, interference, optical vortices, or near fields) the direction of P can differ from the wavevector directions 7,8 .Notably, the origin of this discrepancy between the Poynting momentum and wavevector lies within the framework of relativistic field theory (Supplementary Information). The conserved momentum of the electromagnetic field is associated with the translational symmetry of spacetime through Noether's theorem 10,15 . Applied to the electromagnetic field Lagrangian, this theorem produces the so-called canonical momentum density P can . In the quantum-field framework, the canonical momentum generates spatial translations of the field, in the same way as the de Broglie formula is...
We show that the analogue of the geometric phase for non-Hermitian coupled waveguides with PT -symmetry and at least one periodically varying parameter can be purely imaginary, and will consequently result in the manifestation of an instability in the system. The instability peaks seen in the spectrum of the system's eigenstates after evolution along the waveguides can be directly mapped to the spectrum of the derivative of the geometric function. The instabilities are magnified as the exceptional point of the system is approached, and non-adiabatic effects begin to appear. As the system cannot evolve adiabatically in the vicinity of the exceptional point, PT -symmetry will be observed breaking earlier than theoretically predicted.
The factorisation method commonly used in linear supersymmetric quantum mechanics is extended, such that it can be applied to nonlinear quantum mechanical systems. The new method is distinguishable from the linear formalism, as the superpotential is forced to become eigenfunctiondependent. An example solution is given for the nonlinear Schrödinger equation and its supersymmetric partner equation. This method allows new nonlinear evolution equations to be constructed from the solutions of known nonlinear equations, and has the potential to be a useful tool for mathematicians and physicists working in the field of nonlinear systems, allowing the discovery of previously unknown 'dualities' amongst soliton solutions and their respective equations. arXiv:1707.04634v2 [math-ph]
A non-Hermitian coupled waveguide system with periodically varying parameters, in which the Berry curvature is analogous to a hyperbolic magnetic monopole or antimonopole, is investigated. It is shown to have a purely imaginary Berry connection, and is consequently influenced by a geometric multiplier. It is possible for this multiplier to induce net gain or loss in the system, corresponding to the existence of the antimonopole or monopole in parameter space, respectively. For the right choice of parameters, the system will display an apparent non-adiabatic change in behaviour, which implies a switch between the dominant eigenstate in the waveguides, leading to a change in parameter space analogous to a charge reversal of the hyperbolic magnetic monopole.
A new nonlinear evolution equation for gravitational waves is derived using the full metric, not the Minkowski metric, to raise and lower indices. It is shown that, to second order, purely transverse-traceless plane waves are unable to satisfy the harmonic gauge restrictions, and purely longitudinal-traceless plane waves are instead the simplest solution to both the gauge restrictions and the final equation. However, this will not provide a true nonlinear evolution equation, and it is shown that in order to derive such an equation, non-plane wave modes with a non-zero trace must be taken into account. These modes must contain both longitudinal and transverse components, as both are permitted by the gauge restrictions.
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