Propagation of Structured Gaussian Beams Through Strong Turbulence

This study investigates the propagation effectiveness of various structured Gaussian (SG) beams through atmospheric turbulence. These beams include Laguerre-Gaussian (LG), Hermite-Gaussian (HG), Ince-Gaussian (IG), and Bessel-Gaussian (BG) beams. Notably, LG and BG beams inherently carry orbital angular momentum (OAM), while HG and IG beams do not. The SG beams are propagated through a Monte Carlo phase screen simulating atmospheric turbulence generated using the Modified von Karman phase spectrum. Preliminary simulation results indicate that the beams exhibit varying degrees of sensitivity to intensity distortion. The Scintillation Index (SI) for Laguerre-Gaussian and Bessel-Gaussian beams ranges between 2 and 3, suggesting they are comparatively more effective than Hermite-Gaussian and Ince-Gaussian beams based on these SI values. This study provides valuable insights into the suitability of different structured light beams for various applications, such as optical communication and medical imaging.