Optical Two-Centered Charges, Dipoles, and Conveyor-Belt Modes in Bipolar Coordinates

Abstract: We holographically generate optical modes associated with bipolar-coordinate solutions of the Helmholtz equation. Unlike conventional Gaussian beam families, these modes support multicenter phase discontinuities. We investigate and demonstrate that they support multicentered phase singularities, including optical dipoles and two-centered charge distributions. We further identify a family of conveyor-belt modes whose intensity structure follows an extended trajectory connecting the charge centers. Experimental generation using a spatial light modulator is presented and compared with theoretical predictions. These results establish bipolar-coordinate optical modes as a new class of structured light fields for singular optics, beam shaping, optical manipulation, and the controlled generation of multicentered topological structures.