Related Experiment Video

Updated: Dec 16, 2025

Direct Imaging of Laser-driven Ultrafast Molecular Rotation

Direct Imaging of Laser-driven Ultrafast Molecular Rotation

Published on: February 4, 2017

Probing the reciprocal lattice associated with a triangular slit to determine the orbital angular momentum for a

W C Soares, A L Moura, Askery Canabarro

|July 2, 2020

Abstract:

The orbital angular momentum conservation of light reveals different diffraction patterns univocally dependent on the topological charge of the incident light beam when passing through a triangular aperture. It is demonstrated that these patterns, which are accessed by observing the far-field measurement of the diffracted light, can also be obtained using few photon sources. In order to explain the observed patterns, we introduce an analogy of this optical phenomenon with the study of diffraction for the characterization of the crystal structure of solids. We demonstrate that the finite pattern can be associated with the reciprocal lattice obtained from the direct lattice generated by the primitive vectors composing any two of the sides of the equilateral triangular slit responsible for the diffraction. Using the relation that exists between the direct and reciprocal lattices, we provide a conclusive explanation as to why the diffraction pattern of the main maxima is finite. This can shed a new light on the investigation of crystallographic systems.

More Related Videos

Experimental Methods for Spin- and Angle-Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy Combined with Polarization-Variable Laser

Experimental Methods for Spin- and Angle-Resolved Photoemission Spectroscopy Combined with Polarization-Variable Laser

Published on: June 28, 2018

Measurement of X-ray Beam Coherence along Multiple Directions Using 2-D Checkerboard Phase Grating

Measurement of X-ray Beam Coherence along Multiple Directions Using 2-D Checkerboard Phase Grating

Published on: October 11, 2016

Related Concept Videos

Atomic Orbitals

Atomic Orbitals

An atomic orbital represents the three-dimensional regions in an atom where an electron has the highest probability to reside. The radial distribution function indicates the total probability of finding an electron within the thin shell at a distance r from the nucleus. The atomic orbitals have distinct shapes which are determined by l, the angular momentum quantum number. The orbitals are often drawn with a boundary surface, enclosing densest regions of the cloud.

Quantum Numbers

Quantum Numbers

It is said that the energy of an electron in an atom is quantized; that is, it can be equal only to certain specific values and can jump from one energy level to another but not transition smoothly or stay between these levels.

The de Broglie Wavelength

The de Broglie Wavelength

In the macroscopic world, objects that are large enough to be seen by the naked eye follow the rules of classical physics. A billiard ball moving on a table will behave like a particle; it will continue traveling in a straight line unless it collides with another ball, or it is acted on by some other force, such as friction. The ball has a well-defined position and velocity or well-defined momentum, p = mv, which is defined by mass m and velocity v at any given moment. This is the typical...

Molecular Orbital Theory I

Molecular Orbital Theory I

Overview of Molecular Orbital Theory

The Pauli Exclusion Principle

The Pauli Exclusion Principle

The arrangement of electrons in the orbitals of an atom is called its electron configuration. We describe an electron configuration with a symbol that contains three pieces of information:

Electronic Structure of Atoms

Electronic Structure of Atoms

An atom comprises protons and neutrons, which are contained inside the dense, central core called the nucleus, with electrons present around the nucleus. Taking into account the wave–particle duality of electrons and the uncertainty in position around the nucleus, quantum mechanics provides a more accurate model for the atomic structure. It describes atomic orbitals as the regions around the nucleus where electrons of discrete energy exist, characterized by four quantum...

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Evidence for the Rare Decay B^{+}→Λ[over ¯]pμ^{+}μ^{-}.

Physical review letters·2026

Test of Lepton Flavor Universality with B^{0}→K^{*0}ℓ^{+}ℓ^{-} Decays at Large Dilepton Invariant Mass.

Physical review letters·2026

Observation of CP Violation in B^{0}→J/ψρ(770)^{0} Decays.

Physical review letters·2026

Observation of the Doubly Charmed Baryon Ξ_{cc}^{+} with the LHCb Run 3 Detector.

Physical review letters·2026

Comprehensive Analysis of the B^{0}→K^{*0}μ^{+}μ^{-} Decay.

Physical review letters·2026

First Measurement of Time-Dependent CP Violation in the Flavor-Changing Neutral-Current Decay B^{0}→K_{S}^{0}μ^{+}μ^{-}.

Physical review letters·2026

See all related articles