Generation of a higher-order Poincaré sphere beam array with spatial coherence engineering

Area of Science:

• Optics and Photonics
• Structured Light
• Beam Array Generation

Background:

• Higher-order Poincaré sphere (HOPS) beams offer complex polarization states.
• Generating structured beam arrays with tailored polarization is challenging.
• Spatial coherence properties of light sources influence beam propagation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To propose a protocol for synthesizing vector beam arrays with periodic HOPS polarization states.
• To demonstrate the mapping of source polarization states to far-field beam arrays.
• To control the degree of polarization in the generated beam array.

Main Methods:

• Engineering the second-order spatial coherence structure of a partially coherent light source.
• Utilizing a lattice-like distribution of spatial coherence in the source plane.
• Modulating the transverse spatial coherence width to control polarization.

Main Results:

• A single HOPS beam's polarization state is successfully mapped into a far-field beam array.
• The generated HOPS beam array exhibits periodic polarization states.
• The degree of polarization of the array is conveniently controlled by source coherence width.

Conclusions:

• The proposed method offers a novel approach to construct structured beam arrays.
• This technique enables the generation of vector beams with controllable HOPS polarization.
• Potential applications include multiparticle manipulations and advanced optical systems.