Prof. Dr. Andrey Surzhykov
PTB und Technische Universität Braunschweig 

Structured light and its applications

Light beams with helical phase fronts, which also carry a nonzero projection of the orbital angular momentum (OAM) onto their propagation direction, are currently under intense investigations in many areas of modern physics. Possessing a complex polarization structure and a highly inhomogeneous intensity profile with a central dark spot, these twisted (or vortex) beams have proven to be a valuable tool in classical and quantum information transfer, super-resolution optical sensing and nanoparticle manipulation. During the last decade, vortex light has received also special attention in atomic physics. In my presentation, therefore, I will review the basic properties of vortex light and its applications specifically from the perspective of atomic physics. We will look in detail at three striking examples that concern use of vortex light modes for operation of dipole-forbidden (atomic clock) transitions, in atomic magnetometry and for manipulations with spinor Bose Einstein condensates.