Photon sieves for generating and identifying beams with orbital angular momentum are presented. They are diffractive optical elements (DOEs) based on a traditional Fresnel zone plate (FZP), but composed of a series of microscopic pinholes usually centered on the bright zones. Each circular hole contributes to the focusing and there are multiple possibilities for applying pupil apodization to DOEs that are not possible, and/or difficult, and/or costly compared to optical systems with conventional lenses and mirrors. We will describe in detail the basic spiral photon sieve as well as how various types of the photon sieves can be combined into one optical element for spatial beam shaping.

Date Published: 27 February 2017
PDF: 7 pages
Proc. SPIE 10120, Complex Light and Optical Forces XI, 1012009 (27 February 2017); doi: 10.1117/12.2249626

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 10120:
Complex Light and Optical Forces XI
David L. Andrews; Enrique J. Galvez; Jesper Glückstad, Editor(s)