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Reference.org
Orbital angular momentum of light
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<p>The orbital angular momentum of light (OAM) is the component of <a href="/facts/Angular_momentum_of_light/kbAI46I7">angular momentum of a light beam</a> that is dependent on the field spatial distribution, and not on the <a href="/facts/Polarization_(waves)/fP33m0eD">polarization</a>. OAM can be split into two types. The <i>internal OAM</i> is an origin-independent angular momentum of a light beam that can be associated with a <a href="/facts/Helix/BqC4AKwL">helical</a> or twisted <a href="/facts/Wavefront/5XVoVtDQ">wavefront</a>. The <i>external OAM</i> is the origin-dependent angular momentum that can be obtained as <a href="/facts/Cross_product/uRBJzkcW">cross product</a> of the light beam position (center of the beam) and its total <a href="/facts/Linear_momentum/TTkGv5eY">linear momentum</a>. </p>