arXiv subjects

Thomas Bauer

Publications and source records attributed to Thomas Bauer.

At least 37 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2016

Optical Polarization Möbius Strips and Points of Purely Transverse Spin Density

Tightly focused light beams can exhibit electric fields spinning around any axis including the one transverse to the beams' propagation direction. At certain focal positions, the corresponding local polarization ellipse can degenerate into a perfect circle, representing a point of circular polarization, or C-point. We consider the most fundamental case of a linearly polarized Gaussian beam, where - upon tight focusing - those C-points created by transversely spinning fields can form the center of 3D optical polarization topologies when choosing the plane of observation appropriately. Due to the high symmetry of the focal field, these polarization topologies exhibit non trivial structures similar to Möbius strips. We use a direct physical measure to find C-points with an arbitrarily oriented spinning axis of the electric field and experimentally investigate the fully three-dimensional polarization topologies surrounding these C-points by exploiting an amplitude and phase reconstruction technique.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2015

On the boundedness of the denominators in the Zariski decomposition on surfaces

Zariski decompositions play an important role in the theory of algebraic surfaces. For making geometric use of the decomposition of a given divisor, one needs to pass to a multiple of the divisor in order to clear denominators. It is therefore an intriguing question whether the surface has a 'universal denominator' that can be used to simultaneously clear denominators in all Zariski decompositions on the surface. We prove in this paper that, somewhat surprisingly, this condition of bounded Zariski denominators is equivalent to the bounded negativity of curves that is addressed in the Bounded Negativity Conjecture. Furthermore, we provide explicit bounds for Zariski denominators and negativity of curves in terms of each other.

math.AG↗

arXiv2015

Fixed points of endomorphisms on two-dimensional complex tori

In this paper we investigate fixed-point numbers of endomorphisms on complex tori. Specifically, motivated by the asymptotic perspective that has turned out in recent years to be so fruitful in Algebraic Geometry, we study how the number of fixed points behaves when the endomorphism is iterated. Our first result shows that the fixed-points function of an endomorphism on a two-dimensional complex torus can have only three different kinds of behaviours, and we characterize these behaviours in terms of the analytic eigenvalues. Our second result focuses on simple abelian surfaces and provides criteria for the fixed-points behaviour in terms of the possible types of endomorphism algebras.

math.AG↗

arXiv2014

Towards an optical far-field measurement of higher-order multipole contributions to the scattering response of nanoparticles

We experimentally show an all-optical multipolar decomposition of the lowest-order Eigenmodes of a single gold nanoprism using azimuthally and radially polarized cylindrical vector beams. By scanning the particle through these tailored field distributions, the multipolar character of the Eigenmodes gets encoded into 2D-scanning intensity maps even for higher-order contributions to the Eigenmode that are too weak to be discerned in the direct far-field scattering response. This method enables a detailed optical mode analysis of individual nanoparticles.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2014

Measuring the Transverse Spin Density of Light

We generate tightly focused optical vector beams whose electric fields spin around an axis transverse to the beams' propagation direction. We experimentally investigate these fields by exploiting the directional near-field interference of a dipole-like plasmonic field probe, placed adjacent to a dielectric interface, which depends on the transverse electric spin density of the excitation field. Near- to far-field conversion mediated by the dielectric interface enables us to detect the directionality of the emitted light in the far-field and, therefore, to measure the transverse electric spin density with nanoscopic resolution. Finally, we determine the longitudinal electric component of Belinfante's elusive spin momentum density, a solenoidal field quantity often referred to as 'virtual'.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2014

Bounded Negativity and Arrangements of Lines

The Bounded Negativity Conjecture predicts that for any smooth complex surface $X$ there exists a lower bound for the selfintersection of reduced divisors on $X$. This conjecture is open. It is also not known if the existence of such a lower bound is invariant in the birational equivalence class of $X$. In the present note we introduce certain constants $H(X)$ which measure in effect the variance of the lower bounds in the birational equivalence class of $X$. We focus on rational surfaces and relate the value of $H({\mathbb P}^2)$ to certain line arrangements. Our main result is Theorem 3.3 and the main open challenge is Problem 3.10.

math.AG↗

arXiv2014

On positivity and base loci of vector bundles

The aim of this note is to shed some light on the relationships among some notions of positivity for vector bundles that arose in recent decades. Our purpose is to study several of the positivity notions studied for vector bundles with some notions of asymptotic base loci that can be defined on the variety itself, rather than on the projectivization of the given vector bundle. We relate some of the different notions conjectured to be equivalent with the help of these base loci, and we show that these can help simplify the various relationships between the positivity properties present in the literature. In particular, we define augmented and restricted base loci $\mathbb{B}_+ (E)$ and $\mathbb{B}_- (E)$ of a vector bundle $E$ on the variety $X$, as generalizations of the corresponding notions studied extensively for line bundles. As it turns out, the asymptotic base loci defined here behave well with respect to the natural map induced by the projectivization of the vector bundle $E$.

math.AG↗

arXiv2014

The effect of points fattening in dimension three

There has been increased recent interest in understanding the relationship between the symbolic powers of an ideal and the geometric properties of the corresponding variety. While a number of results are available for the two-dimensional case, the higher-dimensional case is largely unexplored. In the present paper we study a natural conjecture arising from a result by Bocci and Chiantini. As a first step towards understanding the higher-dimensional picture, we show that this conjecture is true in dimension three. Also, we provide examples showing that the hypotheses of the conjecture may not be weakened.

math.AG↗

arXiv2013

Geometric spin Hall effect of light in tightly focused polarization tailored light beams

Recently, it was shown that a non-zero transverse angular momentum manifests itself in a polarization dependent intensity shift of the barycenter of a paraxial light beam [A. Aiello et al., Phys. Rev. Lett. 103, 100401 (2009)]. The underlying effect is phenomenologically similar to the spin Hall effect of light, but does not depend on the specific light-matter interaction and can be interpreted as a purely geometric effect. Thus, it was named the geometric spin Hall effect of light. Here, we experimentally investigate the appearance of this effect in tightly focused vector-beams. We use an experimental nano-probing technique in combination with a reconstruction algorithm to verify the relative shifts of the components of the electric energy density in the focal plane, which are linked to the intensity shift. By that, we experimentally demonstrate the geometric spin Hall effect of light in a focused light beam.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2013

Nanointerferometric Amplitude and Phase Reconstruction of Tightly Focused Vector Beams

Highly confined vectorial electromagnetic field distributions represent an excellent tool for detailed studies in nano-optics and high resolution microscopy, such as nonlinear microscopy, advanced fluorescence imaging or nanoplasmonics. Such field distributions can be generated, for instance, by tight focussing of polarized light beams. To guarantee high quality and resolution in the investigation of objects with sub-wavelength dimensions, the precise knowledge of the spatial distribution of the exciting vectorial field is of utmost importance. Full-field reconstruction methods presented so far involved, for instance, complex near-field techniques. Here, we demonstrate a simple and straight-forward to implement measurement scheme and reconstruction algorithm based on the scattering signal of a single spherical nanoparticle as a field-probe. We are able to reconstruct the amplitudes of the individual focal field components as well as their relative phase distributions with sub-wavelength resolution from a single scan measurement without the need for polarization analysis of the scattered light. This scheme can help to improve modern microscopy and nanoscopy techniques.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2012

The photonic wheel: demonstration of a state of light with purely transverse angular momentum

The concept of angular momentum is ubiquitous to many areas of physics. In classical mechanics, a system may possess an angular momentum which can be either transverse (e.g., in a spinning wheel) or longitudinal (e.g., for a fluidic vortex) to the direction of motion. Photons, however, are well-known to exhibit intrinsic angular momentum which is longitudinal only: the spin angular momentum defining the beam polarization and the orbital angular momentum associated with a spiraling phase front. Here we show that it is possible to generate a novel state of light that contains purely transverse angular momentum, the analogue of a spinning mechanical wheel. We use an optical nano-probing technique to experimentally demonstrate its occurrence in our setup. Such a state of light can provide additional rotational degree of freedom in optical tweezers and optical manipulation.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2012

Nonlocal electron-phonon interaction as a source of dynamic charge stripes in the cuprates

We calculate for La2CuO4 the phonon-induced redistribution of the electronic charge density in the insulating, the underdoped pseudogap and the more conventional metallic state as obtained for optimal and overdoping, respectively. The investigation is performed for the anomalous high-frequency-oxygen-bond stretching modes (OBSM) which experimentally are known to display a strong softening of the frequencies upon doping in the cuprates. This most likely generic anomalous behaviour of the OBSM has been shown to be due to a strong nonlocal electron-phonon interaction (EPI) mediated by charge fluctuations on the ions. The modeling of the competing electronic states of the cuprates is achieved in terms of consecutive orbital selective incompressibility-compressibility transitions for the charge response. We demonstrate that the softening of the OBSM in these states is due to nonlocally induced dynamic charge inhomogenities in form of charge stripes along the CuO bonds with different orbital character. Thus, a multi-orbital approach is essential for the CuO plane. The dynamic charge inhomogeneities may in turn be considered as precursors of static charge stripe order as recently observed in La$_{2-x}$Ba$_{x}$CuO$_{4}$ in a broad range of doping around x=1/8. The latter may trigger a reconstruction of the Fermi surface into small pockets with reduced doping. We argue that the incompressibility of the Cu3d orbital and simultaneously the compressibility of the O2p orbital in the pseudogap state seems to be required to nucleate dynamic stripes.

cond-mat.supr-con↗

arXiv2012

Volumes of Zariski chambers

Zariski chambers are natural pieces into which the big cone of an algebraic surface decomposes. They have so far been studied both from a geometric and from a combinatorial perspective. In the present paper we complement the picture with a metric point of view by studying a suitable notion of chamber sizes. Our first result gives a precise condition for the nef cone volume to be finite and provides a method for computing it inductively. Our second result determines the volumes of arbitrary Zariski chambers from nef cone volumes of blow-downs. We illustrate the applicability of this method by explicitly determining the chamber volumes on Del Pezzo and other anti-canonical surfaces.

math.AG↗

arXiv2012

Zariski chambers on surfaces of high Picard number

We present an improved algorithm for the computation of Zariski chambers on algebraic surfaces. The new algorithm significantly outperforms the so far available method and allows therefore to treat surfaces of high Picard number, where huge chamber numbers occur. As an application, we efficiently compute the number of chambers supported by the lines on the Segre-Schur quartic.

math.AG↗

arXiv2011

Zariski decomposition: a new (old) chapter of linear algebra

In a 1962 paper, Zariski introduced the decomposition theory that now bears his name. Although it arose in the context of algebraic geometry and deals with the configuration of curves on an algebraic surface, we have recently observed that the essential concept is purely within the realm of linear algebra. In this paper, we formulate Zariski decomposition as a theorem in linear algebra and present a linear algebraic proof. We also sketch the geometric context in which Zariski first introduced his decomposition.

math.AG↗

arXiv2011

Recent developments and open problems in linear series

In the week 3--9, October 2010, the Mathematisches Forschungsinstitut at Oberwolfach hosted a mini workshop Linear Series on Algebraic Varieties. These notes contain a variety of interesting problems which motivated the participants prior to the event, and examples, results and further problems which grew out of discussions during and shortly after the workshop. A lot of arguments presented here are scattered in the literature or constitute folklore. It was one of our aims to have a usable and easily accessible collection of examples and results.

math.AG↗

arXiv2010

On the Seshadri constants of adjoint line bundles

In the present paper we are concerned with the possible values of Seshadri constants. While in general every positive rational number appears as the local Seshadri constant of some ample line bundle, we point out that for adjoint line bundles there are explicit lower bounds depending only on the dimension of the underlying variety. In the surface case, where the optimal lower bound is 1/2, we characterize all possible values in the range between 1/2 and 1 -- there are surprisingly few. As expected, one obtains even more restrictive results for the Seshadri constants of adjoints of very ample line bundles. Our description of the border case in this situation makes use of adjunction-theoretical results on surfaces. Finally, we study Seshadri constants of adjoint line bundles in the multi-point setting.

math.AG↗

arXiv2010

A primer on Seshadri constants

Seshadri constants express the so called local positivity of a line bundle on a projective variety. They were introduced by Demailly. The original idea of using them towards a proof of the Fujita conjecture failed but they quickly became a subject of intensive study quite in their own right. Lazarsfeld's book "Positivity in Algebraic Geometry" contains a whole chapter devoted to local positivity and serves as a very enjoyable introduction to Seshadri constants. Since this book has appeared, the subject witnessed quite a bit of development. It is the aim of these notes to give an account of recent progress as well as to discuss many open questions and provide some examples.

math.AG↗