Generation of Optical Beams Carrying Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM)

It is known that the orbital angular momentum (OAM) is linked to the helical phase of light. Nowadays, optical beams carrying OAM are shown to be useful for many applications, from quantum optics to optical communication and to bio-photonics. Following the work of M. Massari et al., we demonstrate the generation of optical beams with OAM by using spiral phase plates. Three examples with different OAM indices are shown in the simulation with VirtualLab Fusion.