Abstract

We develop a paraxial wave equation for an azimuthally polarized field propagating in free space. The equation’s beamlike solution is composed of a plane-wave propagation factor multiplied by a Bessel function of the first kind, of order one, and a Gaussian factor, which describe the transverse characteristics of the beam. We compare the propagation characteristics of the azimuthal Bessel–Gauss beam solution with a solution of the more familiar scalar paraxial wave equation, the linearly polarized Bessel–Gauss beam.

© 1994 Optical Society of America

Diffraction characteristics of the azimuthal Bessel–Gauss beam

Pamela L. Greene and Dennis G. Hall
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Bessel–Gauss beams as rigorous solutions of the Helmholtz equation

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