Genuine full characterization of partially coherence beam

Abstract

For partially coherent light fields with random fluctuations, the intensity distributions and statistics have been proven to be more propagation robust compared with coherent light. However, its full potential in practical applications has not been realized due to the lack of four-dimensional optical field measurement. Here, a general modal decomposition method of partially coherent light field is proposed and demonstrated. The decomposed random modes can be used to, but not limited to, reconstruct average intensity, cross spectral density and orthogonal decomposition properties of the partially coherent light fields. Due to its versatility and flexibility, this method provides a powerful tool to further reveal light field invariant or retrieve embedded information after propagation through complex media. The Gaussian-shell-model beam and partially coherent Gaussian array are used as examples to demonstrate the reconstruction and even prediction of second-order statistical characteristics. This method is expected to pave the way for applications of partially coherent light in optical imaging, optical encryption and anti-turblence optical communication