title: Partially coherent flat-topped beam and its propagation.
abstract: A partially coherent beam with flat-topped profile is proposed. The cross-spectral density of this beam can be expressed as a finite series of the cross-spectral density of partially coherent Gaussian-Schell-model beams with different parameters. Analytical propagation formulas for partially coherent flat-topped beams are derived through aligned and misaligned optical systems. The propagation property of partially coherent flat-topped beams in free space is illustrated numerically. The fractional Fourier transform of partially coherent fiat-topped beams is also studied. Our method provides a convenient way to describe partially coherent flat-topped beams and treat their propagation and transformation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Institute of Optics, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310027, China.
authors.forename: Di
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: Yangjian
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Cai
authors.forename: Qiang
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Lin