OAM

Technical Explanation

Orbital Angular Momentum (OAM) exploits the spatial phase degrees of freedom of electromagnetic radiation. By twisting the wavefront of an electromagnetic wave into a helical vortex, different OAM states (topological charges: l = 0, ±1, ±2, ...) become mutually orthogonal over the same spatial aperture and frequency channel. In 6G line-of-sight backhaul and point-to-point links, OAM enables parallel spatial multiplexing without requiring separated antenna element baselines.

Key Functions

• Multiplexing multiple independent data streams on a single frequency carrier using helical phase twists
• Significant expansion of physical-layer channel capacity on point-to-point wireless links
• Enhanced anti-eavesdropping security due to localized vortex receiver alignment constraints
• High-capacity point-to-point wireless backhauling between base stations and data centers
• Generation via circular antenna arrays, spiral phase plates, or metasurface holograms