Diffractive Beam‐Shaping Element for Generating Multiple Structured Beams with Distinct Spatial Structures

Abstract

AbstractThis paper presents a novel approach for generating structured light using a diffractive beam‐shaping element that can generate multiple beams with distinct spatial structures in the focal plane. The element is constructed by restructuring a spiral zone plate with fork gratings, providing a tunable and controllable means for generating structured light. The element can create linear and 2D arrays of various structured beams, including vortices with adjustable charge and vorticity, petallike beams, and ring‐lattice structures. To control the generation of these beams, it introduces several parameters of the fork gratings, enabling tailoring of the beam properties to specific applications. The proposed approach involves significant mathematical analysis, including the derivation of complex equations and expressions to understand the behavior of the proposed element and its impact on the generated beams. It conducts simulations and experiments to validate the mathematical analysis and demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed approach.