Role of Azimuthal Energy Flows in the Geometric Spin Hall Effect of Light

Abstract

In an oblique section of a paraxial beam with angular momentum, the beam center of gravity (CG) is shifted with respect to its position in the normal cross section. We relate this shift with the internal energy redistribution occurring on the passage between the normal and oblique sections. The transverse orbital flow explains the effect for scalar beams, similar incorporation of the spin flow enables explanation of the CG shift in oblique sections of the elliptically polarized beams. Role of the special properties of the position-sensitive detector placed in the oblique beam section is discussed.