Morphologies of caustics and dislocation lines: some clues about their interrelation

Area of Science:

• Physics
• Optics
• Singular Optics

Background:

• Structured electromagnetic beams are characterized by phase and intensity.
• Caustics and helical dislocation lines represent extreme or undefined behaviors of beam derivatives.

Purpose of the Study:

• To theoretically investigate the interrelation between the morphology of caustics and dislocation lines in structured beams.
• To introduce an efficient methodology for analyzing optical vortices and their associated dislocation lines.

Main Methods:

• Theoretical analysis of structured electromagnetic beams.
• Development and application of a methodology for identifying optical vortices, topological charge, and helical dislocation lines.
• Application to paraxial elliptic umbilic beams and nonparaxial Airy symmetric 3D beams.

Main Results:

• Dislocation lines function as an endoskeleton in the high-intensity regions of nonparaxial beams.
• Caustic surfaces define finite volumes with varying average intensities.
• Exoskeletons in low-intensity regions exhibit complex features influenced by caustics.

Conclusions:

• The study elucidates the intricate relationship between caustics and dislocation lines in shaping structured light.
• The developed methodology enables detailed analysis of optical vortices and beam morphology.
• Findings offer insights into the structural organization of light fields, particularly in nonparaxial beams.