Propagation of laser beam parameters through pure phase transmittances

Abstract

The propagation laws of the intensity moments of a laser beam through ABCD optical systems are generalized to include pure phase transmittances. This is done by representing the behaviour of such transmittances by means of a 4 x 4 matrix, hi, which can be handled, to some extent, as the ABCD-matrices associated with ordinary first-order optical systems. This formalism enables the application of ABCD propagation formulae to cascaded optical systems containing pure phase transmittances. Matrix M is used to determine the intensity moments at the output of two special quartic phase transmittances, namely, a circular spherically aberrated lens and a pair of orthogonal cylindrical (also aberrated) lenses.