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We present a series of four experiments unveiling intriguing characteristics of structured beams when interacting with individual, well-localized atoms. The initial investigation explores the placement of a single atom within the dark center of a vortex/doughnut beam, revealing unexpected excitations. Furthermore, the study demonstrates the transfer of the beam’s chirality to the internal and external motion of the atom, as evidenced by alterations in allowed atomic transitions. The research showcases the ability of both intrinsic (polarization) and extrinsic (orbital/structural) angular momentum of the beam to influence the atom, resulting in the transfer of two units of angular momentum. Notably, structured beams induce motion transversal to their propagation direction. The paper concludes with a position-resolved measurement of the azimuthal Doppler shift of a structured beam, uncovering its characteristic divergence at the center and its scale-invariant nature. These findings offer valuable insights into the understanding of structured beam-atom interactions, potentially constituting the first indirect observation of the elusive super-kicks predicted by Barnett and Berry in 2013.
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