Non-destructive OAM measurement via light–matter interaction

The detection of orbital angular momentum usually relies on optical techniques, which modify the original beam to convert the information carried on its phase into a specific intensity distribution in output. Moreover, the exploitation of high-intensity beams can result destructive for standard optical elements and setups. A recent publication suggests a solution to overcome all those limitations, by probing highly-intense vortex pulses with a structured reference beam in a strong-field photoionization process.