Visualizing the Energy Flow of Tailored Light

Abstract Exploiting the energy flow of light fields is an essential key to tailor complex optical multistate spin and orbital angular momentum (OAM) dynamics. With this work, the energy flow is identified and quantified by a novel approach that is based on the symmetry breaking induced by nonlinear light–matter interaction of OAM carrying beams at the example of Mathieu beams, showing transverse invariant intensity distributions. These complex scalar nondiffracting beams exhibit outstanding transverse energy flows on elliptic paths. Although their energy is continuously redistributed during linear propagation in homogeneous media, the beams stay nondiffracting. This approach to visualize the energy flow of light is based on the nonlinear self‐action in a nonlinear crystal. By this, the sensitive equilibrium is perturbed and accumulation of rotating high‐intensity spots is enabled. Intensity distributions on elliptic, chiral paths are demonstrated as a manifestation of the energy flow. Furthermore, the formation of corresponding refractive index modulations that may be implemented as chiral waveguides, is controlled via the beam power and structure size.