Mechanical effects of light on material media: radiation pressure and the linear and angular momenta of photons

Masud Mansuripur

doi:10.1117/12.2063432

5 September 2014 Mechanical effects of light on material media: radiation pressure and the linear and angular momenta of photons

Masud Mansuripur

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9186, Fifty Years of Optical Sciences at The University of Arizona; 91860S (2014) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2063432
Event: SPIE Optical Engineering + Applications, 2014, San Diego, California, United States

Abstract

Electromagnetic waves carry energy as well as linear and angular momenta. Interactions between light and material media typically involve the exchange of all three entities. In all such interactions energy and momentum (both linear and angular) are conserved. Johannes Kepler seems to have been the first person to notice that the pressure of sunlight is responsible for the tails of the comets pointing away from the Sun. Modern applications of radiation pressure and photon momentum include solar sails, optical tweezers for optical trapping and micro-manipulation, and optically-driven micro-motors and actuators. This paper briefly describes certain fundamental aspects underlying the mechanical properties of light, and examines several interesting phenomena involving the linear and angular momenta of photons.

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Masud Mansuripur "Mechanical effects of light on material media: radiation pressure and the linear and angular momenta of photons", Proc. SPIE 9186, Fifty Years of Optical Sciences at The University of Arizona, 91860S (5 September 2014); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2063432

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