Microcavity-based generation of full Poincare beams with arbitrary skyrmion numbers

A full Poincare (FP) beam possesses all possible optical spin states in its cross section, which constitutes an optical analog of a skyrmion. Until now FP beams have been exclusively generated using bulk optics. Here we propose a generation scheme of an FP beam based on an optical microring cavity. We position two different angular gratings along with chiral lines on a microring cavity and generate an FP beam as a superposition of two light beams with controlled spin and orbital angular momenta. We numerically show that FP beams with tailored skyrmion numbers can be generated from this device, opening a route for developing compact light sources with unique optical spin fields.

Automated summary

The study proposes a method for generating FP beams using an optical microring cavity, allowing for the creation of FP beams with tailored skyrmion numbers by controlling the spin and orbital angular momenta. This opens up possibilities for developing compact light sources with unique optical spin fields.