Asymmetric optical beam manipulation via polarization and spatial phase-dependency

We report on an optical beam produced by superimposing radially- and circularly-polarized laser beams for active control of the location of the beam's intensity. The asymmetric intensity distribution relative to the beam's central axis, and its location is determined by the relative phase difference between the two beams. Since the beam has a planar wavefront, it carries no orbital angular momentum, yet it shares phase singularity and spiral interference characteristics commonly associated with helical wavefronts. Such an optical beam is valuable for applications in optical–optical switches and routers, optical steering, and also optical trapping and rotation, or driving opto-micromachines.