Visualization of the optical spin Hall effect in out-of-plane refraction

Abstract

The traditional law of refraction defines the incidence plane as the plane including the incident beam wavevector and the surface normal vector at the interface of two different optical media. The optical spin Hall effect (OSHE) refers to the spin-dependent transverse shift of the refracted beam perpendicular to the incidence plane. In this Letter, we demonstrate that OSHE in out-of-plane refraction can be detected and visualized in the far-field, even at small and normal incidence angles. The extent of spin-dependent photon spatial separation induced by anomalous refraction can be customized by manipulating the 2D additive momentum from the metasurface. Experimental visualization of the OSHE confirms the existence of a new, to the best of our knowledge, plane to describe the OSHE of the refracted beam outside the incidence plane.