Collision of two hopfions

We study the collision of two hopfions, or Hopf–Rañada electromagnetic fields. The superposition of two of such fields, travelling in opposite directions, yields different topology for the electric and magnetic field lines. Controlling the angular momentum of such fields, we can control the topology of the flow associated with the field lines, as well as the energy distribution. The concept of electromagnetic helicity and the exchange between its magnetic and electric components are used to explain the different behaviour observed when the angular momentum is reversed. (paper)