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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

How light makes nearby particles do the twist

Light travelling through a fibre can impart a twist to glass spheres if the light itself is not twisting.
Illuminated fanned out optical fibers closeup in dark back.

The electromagnetic field of light travelling through optical fibres (pictured) is not confined to the fibre itself. Credit: Alamy

Light propagating in an optical fibre can make a tiny glass sphere nearby twist around on its axis. A theoretical analysis now explains why — and unexpectedly shows that the effect does not require the light itself to be twisting1.

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Nature 617, 440 (2023)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01568-y

References

  1. Lu, J., Ginis, V., Qiu, C.-W. & Capasso, F. Phys. Rev. Lett. 130, 183601 (2023).

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