Propagation of an Azimuthally Polarized Terahertz Laser Beams with a Phase Singularity
Abstract
Analytical expressions are derived to describe the nonparaxial diffraction of modes in a dielectric waveguide resonator for a terahertz laser. The study examines the interaction between azimuthally polarized TE0m (m = 1, 2, 3) modes and a spiral phase plate (SPP), accounting for its different topological charges (n). Using numerical modeling, the emerging physical properties of vortex beams are investigated when they propagate in free space. Vector integral Rayleigh-Sommerfeld transforms are used to study the propagation in the Fresnel zone of vortex laser beams excited by TE0m modes of a dielectric waveguide quasi-optical resonator when they are incident on a phase plate. In the studied modes, in the absence of a phase plate, the field exhibits a ring-shaped transverse intensity distribution along the propagation axis. In this case, the number of rings in the cross-section corresponds to the azimuthal number of modes, and the phase distributions for the transverse components of these modes have opposite signs. The use of a SPP with a topological charge n = 1 changes the structure of the beam field, forming an axial maximum in the transverse profile with an increase in the beam diameter at this maximum compared to the case without a phase plate. At the same time the phase structure of the field for transverse components acquires two-lobe symmetry. When using a SPP with a topological charge n = 2 for the TE01 mode the restoration of the ring-like field structure is observed and for the TE02 and TE03 modes the formation of regions of increased intensity is observed. In this case, the phase distributions of the field components for the TE01 and TE02 modes acquire a three-lobe spiral structure, whereas those for the TE03 mode acquire a multi-lobe spiral configuration.
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References
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