Light deflection by light: Effect of incidence angle and inhomogeneity

Abstract

We study the angular deflection of the circularly polarized components of a linearly polarized probe field in a weakly birefringent atomic system in tripod configuration. A spatially inhomogeneous control field incident obliquely onto an atomic vapor cell facilitates a large angular divergence between circular components. We show that the angular resolution can be dynamically controlled by optimally choosing the angle of incidence and the transverse profile of the control beam. For instance, by employing a Laguerre-Gaussian profile of the control field, one can impart a large angular divergence to the circular components close to the entry face of the atomic vapor cell. We further demonstrate how such a medium causes the focusing and refocusing of the probe field, thereby acting as a lens with multiple foci. The absorption in the medium remains negligible at resonance due to electromagnetically induced transparency.