Chang Shan-Shan, Wu Ke-Hui, Liu Si-Jia, Lin Zhi-Kang, Wu Jin-Bing, Ge Shi-Jun, Chen Lu-Jian, Chen Peng, Hu Wei, Xu Yadong, Chen Huanyang, He Dahai, Yang Da-Quan, Jiang Jian-Hua, Lu Yan-Qing, Chen Jin-Hui
Institute of Electromagnetics and Acoustics, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China.
Department of Electronic Engineering, Xiamen University, Xiamen, 361005, China.
Nat Commun. 2024 Jan 3;15(1):197. doi: 10.1038/s41467-023-44500-8.
Branched flows occur ubiquitously in various wave systems, when the propagating waves encounter weak correlated scattering potentials. Here we report the experimental realization of electrical tuning of the branched flow of light using a nematic liquid crystal (NLC) system. We create the physical realization of the weakly correlated disordered potentials of light via the inhomogeneous orientations of the NLC. We demonstrate that the branched flow of light can be switched on and off as well as tuned continuously through the electro-optical properties of NLC film. We further show that the branched flow can be manipulated by the polarization of the incident light due to the optical anisotropy of the NLC film. The nature of the branched flow of light is revealed via the unconventional intensity statistics and the rapid fidelity decay along the light propagation. Our study unveils an excellent platform for the tuning of the branched flow of light which creates a testbed for fundamental physics and offers a new way for steering light.
当传播的波遇到弱相关散射势时，分支流在各种波系统中普遍存在。在此，我们报告了使用向列型液晶（NLC）系统对光的分支流进行电调谐的实验实现。我们通过NLC的非均匀取向创建了光的弱相关无序势的物理实现。我们证明，通过NLC薄膜的电光特性，光的分支流可以开启和关闭，也可以连续调谐。我们进一步表明，由于NLC薄膜的光学各向异性，分支流可以通过入射光的偏振进行操控。通过非常规的强度统计以及沿光传播方向的快速保真度衰减，揭示了光的分支流的本质。我们的研究揭示了一个用于调谐光的分支流的优秀平台，该平台为基础物理学创建了一个测试平台，并为控制光提供了一种新方法。
