Nonparaxial singular beams inside the focal region of a high numerical-aperture lens

Key optical technologies, including lithography, data storage, optical tweezers, microscopy, and ultrafast laser materials processing, rely on strongly focused light beams. Such beams are often used to exploit a vectorial nature of light and so detailed knowledge of the field structure inside a tight focus becomes increasingly important. So far, theoretical studies of intra-focal optical field components have been mainly concentrated on spatially homogeneous states of light polarisation. In this work we present a new development in the calculations of local polarisation structure of tightly focused singular beams, including radially and azimuthally polarised hollow beams.