Bell said:Summary:: What's the direction of electric field in Laguerre-Gaussian beams?
As for Laguerre-Gaussian beams, the direction of wave vector is helical, and how about the direction of electric field? I found that there was little literature mentioned this.
A Laguerre-Gaussian beam is a type of laser beam that has a spatially varying intensity and phase profile. It is characterized by a doughnut-shaped intensity pattern with a phase that varies in a spiral-like manner around the beam axis.
The electric field direction in a Laguerre-Gaussian beam is determined by the azimuthal index, which describes the number of helical wavefronts present in the beam. The direction of the electric field is perpendicular to the wavefronts and follows a spiral-like pattern corresponding to the phase profile of the beam.
Yes, the direction of the electric field in a Laguerre-Gaussian beam can be changed by altering the azimuthal index. This can be done by using a spatial light modulator or by changing the properties of the laser cavity producing the beam.
The electric field direction in Laguerre-Gaussian beams plays a crucial role in various applications, such as optical trapping, optical tweezers, and optical communications. It also affects the beam's propagation and interaction with matter, making it an important parameter to consider in experiments and applications.
The electric field direction in Laguerre-Gaussian beams is perpendicular to the wavefronts and varies in a spiral-like pattern, while in Gaussian beams, it is parallel to the wavefronts and remains constant. This difference is due to the presence of a phase profile in Laguerre-Gaussian beams, which is absent in Gaussian beams.