Optomechanics based on angular momentum exchange between light and matter

The subject of optomechanics involves interactions between optical and mechanical degrees of freedom, and is currently of great interest as an enabler of fundamental investigations in quantum mechanics, as well as a platform for ultrasensitive measurement devices. The majority of optomechanical configurations rely on the exchange of linear momentum between light and matter. We will begin this tutorial with a brief description of such systems. Subsequently, we will introduce optomechanical systems based on angular momentum exchange. In this context, optical fields carrying polarization and orbital angular momentum will be considered, while for the mechanics, torsional and free rotational motion will be of relevance. Our overall aims will be to supply basic analyses of some of the existing theoretical proposals, to provide functional descriptions of some of the experiments conducted thus far, and to consider some directions for future research. We hope this tutorial will be useful to both theorists and experimentalists interested in the subject.Comment: Invited PhD tutorial, J. Phys. B., 33 pages, 13 figures, comments welcom

An Interactive Zoo Guide: A Case Study of Collaborative Learning

Real Industry Projects and team work can have a great impact on student learning but providing these activities requires significant commitment from academics. It requires several years planning implementing to create a collaborative learning environment that mimics the real world ICT (Information and Communication Technology) industry workplace. In this project, staff from all the three faculties, namely the Faculty of Health, Engineering and Science, Faculty of Arts, Education and Human Development, and Faculty of Business and Law in higher education work together to establish a detailed project management plan and to develop the unit guidelines for participating students. The proposed project brings together students from business, multimedia and computer science degrees studying their three project-based units within each faculty to work on a relatively large IT project with our industry partner, Melbourne Zoo. This paper presents one multimedia software project accomplished by one of the multi-discipline student project teams. The project was called 'Interactive ZooOz Guide' and developed on a GPS-enabled PDA device in 2007. The developed program allows its users to navigate through the Zoo via an interactive map and provides multimedia information of animals on hotspots at the 'Big Cats' section of the Zoo so that it enriches user experience at the Zoo. A recent development in zoo applications is also reviewed. This paper is also intended to encourage academia to break boundaries to enhance students' learning beyond classroom.Comment: 11 Page