Open AccessRefractive laser beam shaping by means of a functional differential equation based design approach
Author(s) -
Fabian Duerr,
Hugo Thienpont
Publication year - 2014
Publication title -
optics express
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.394
H-Index - 271
ISSN - 1094-4087
DOI - 10.1364/oe.22.008001
Subject(s) - optics , irradiance , ray tracing (physics) , gaussian beam , geometrical optics , physics , gaussian , lens (geology) , laser , laser beam quality , zernike polynomials , beam (structure) , laser beams , wavefront , quantum mechanics
Many laser applications require specific irradiance distributions to ensure optimal performance. Geometric optical design methods based on numerical calculation of two plano-aspheric lenses have been thoroughly studied in the past. In this work, we present an alternative new design approach based on functional differential equations that allows direct calculation of the rotational symmetric lens profiles described by two-point Taylor polynomials. The formalism is used to design a Gaussian to flat-top irradiance beam shaping system but also to generate a more complex dark-hollow Gaussian (donut-like) irradiance distribution with zero intensity in the on-axis region. The presented ray tracing results confirm the high accuracy of both calculated solutions and emphasize the potential of this design approach for refractive beam shaping applications.