Using coherence theory, the partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam is introduced. The analytical equation for propagation of a partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam in turbulent atmosphere is derived, using the extended Huygens-Fresnel diffraction integral formula. The influence of coherence length, beam order N, topological charge M, and structure constant of the turbulent atmosphere on the average intensity of this beam propagating in turbulent atmosphere are analyzed using numerical examples.
Recently, much attention has been paid to the propagation properties of a laser beam in turbulent atmosphere [1]. It is found that the intensity and spreading of a laser beam are affected by atmospheric turbulence [2-8], and the laser beam with a vortex has been widely studied, due to its potential applications in free-space laser communication. In past years, Wang
In this work, we first introduce the partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam based on the theory of coherence, and then investigate the its propagation properties in turbulent atmosphere.
II. PROPAGATION OF A PARTIALLY COHERENT FLAT-TOPPED VORTEX HOLLOW BEAM IN TURBULENT ATMOSPHERE
In the Cartesian coordinate system with the
where
Based on the theory of coherence, a fully coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam can be extended to a partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam. The second-order correlation properties of an electromagnetic beam can be characterized by the cross-spectral density function introduced by Wolf [17],
where
where
Substituting Eq. (1) into Eq. (2), the partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam can be written as
where r10 = (
According to the extended Huygens-Fresnel principle, the spectral density of a laser beam propagating through turbulent atmosphere can be expressed as follows [1-9]:
where
where
with is the constant of refraction index structure, which describes the turbulence strength.
Upon substituting Eq. (4) into Eq. (5), and recalling the integral formulas [18]
after tedious integral calculations, we can obtain
with
and
Eqs. (11)~(15) make up the main analytical expression for a partially coherent circular or elliptical flat-topped vortex beam propagating in turbulent atmosphere. Using the derived equations we can investigate the propagation and transformation of a partially coherent circular or elliptical flat-topped vortex hollow beam in turbulent atmosphere.
The degree of coherence of the laser beam is written as [19]
and the position of coherence vortices at the propagation L is expressed as [20]
where Re and Im are respectively the real and imaginary parts of
III. NUMERICAL EXAMPLES AND ANALYSIS
In this section we study the propagation properties of a partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam in turbulent atmosphere. In this work, the calculation parameters
Figures 1 and 2 show the normalized average intensity and corresponding contour graphs of, respectively, partially coherent circular and elliptical flat-topped vortex hollow beams propagating in turbulent atmosphere; the calculation parameters are ,
Figure 3 shows the cross section (
Figure 4 presents the cross section (
Figure 5 depicts the cross section (
Figure 6 presents the curves for Re
In this paper the partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam is introduced, and then the propagation Eq. for a partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam in turbulent atmosphere is derived. The average intensity of a beam propagating in turbulent atmosphere is examined using numerical examples. It is found that a partially coherent flat-topped vortex hollow beam will evolve into a Gaussian beam in the far field, and that a beam propagation in turbulent atmosphere with small coherence length or large structure constant will evolve into a Gaussian beam more rapidly. We also find that a beam with higher order