Physics Commons^™

Polarization Properties Of Maxwell-Gauss Laser Beams, Jessica Patricia Conry

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Laser beams are wave-like optical disturbances. They are characterized by a dominant direction of propagation and a finite extent transverse to the direction of propagation. Many characteristics of laser beams can be described in terms of a scalar function multiplied by a constant vector, which can be real (for linear polarization) or complex (for elliptical polarization). The scalar function is a solution to the paraxial scalar wave equation. This scalar description, however, fails to describe the polarization and focusing characteristics of laser beams correctly. For a correct accounting of these characteristics, the electric and magnetic fields associated with laser beams …