• Abstract

      Poincaré beams (PBs), characterized by their entanglement between helical wavefronts and vectorial polarization, serve as high-dimensional information carriers in classical and quantum optics. The topological charge (TC) is the fundamental parameter governing their singularity structure; however, characterizing the phase and polarization TCs simultaneously remains a significant challenge. Conventional approaches are often limited to static measurements or decouple these parameters through complex, multi-step processes, failing to capture the real-time dynamics essential for modern optical communications. Here, we demonstrate a robust, single-shot detection system capable of simultaneously resolving phase and polarization TCs for arbitrary states on the hybrid-order Poincaré sphere (HyPS). By leveraging a pair of Pancharatnam-Berry optical elements (PBOEs), we implement a conformal mapping that transforms the full angular momentum eigenstates into spatially separated coordinates. This unique configuration allows for the direct readout of TCs through position encoding, effectively decoupling the spin and orbital angular momentum components. We experimentally validate this method by detecting the dynamic evolution of PBs across eight different HyPSs with component orders up to 20, confirming its capability to distinguish between scalar, vector, and hybrid modes in real-time. This work establishes a versatile framework for the dynamic decoding of structured light, holding profound implications for high-capacity optical communications and information encryption.
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