Proposal for measuring the optical version of the He-McKellar-Wilkens phase using an atom interferometer, and its connection to the Abraham-Minkowski controversy

An electric dipole moving in a magnetic field acquires a geometric phase known as the He-McKellar-Wilkens (HMW) phase, which is the electromagnetic dual of the Aharanov-Casher phase. The HMW phase was first measured in 2012 using an atom interferometer [1]. In that experiment the electric and magnetic fields were static. We propose a modification where these fields are generated by laser beams. The significance of the optical HMW phase is that it can be connected to the Abraham-Minkowski controversy.



[1] Lepoutre et al, PRL 109, 120404 (2012)