Skip to main content
Article
Analysis of the Joint Impact of Atmospheric Turbulence and Refractivity on Laser Beam Propagation
Optics Express
  • Victor A. Kulikov, Optonicus
  • Mikhail Vorontsov, University of Dayton
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
11-13-2017
Abstract

A laser beam propagation model that accounts for the joint effect of atmospheric turbulence and refractivity is introduced and evaluated through numerical simulations. In the numerical analysis of laser beam propagation, refractive index inhomogeneities along the atmospheric propagation path were represented by a combination of the turbulence-induced random fluctuations described in the framework of classical Kolmogorov turbulence theory and large-scale refractive index variations caused by the presence of an inverse temperature layer. The results demonstrate that an inverse temperature layer located in the vicinity of a laser beam’s propagation path may strongly impact the laser beam statistical characteristics including the beam wander and long-exposure beam footprint, and be a reason for refractivity-induced spatial anisotropy of these characteristics.

Inclusive pages
28524–28535
ISBN/ISSN
1094-4087
Document Version
Published Version
Comments

© 2017 Optical Society of America. Users may use, reuse, and build upon the article, or use the article for text or data mining, so long as such uses are for non-commercial purposes and appropriate attribution is maintained. All other rights are reserved.

Permission documentation on file.

Publisher
Optical Society of America
Place of Publication
Washington, DC
Peer Reviewed
Yes
Citation Information
Victor A. Kulikov and Mikhail Vorontsov. "Analysis of the Joint Impact of Atmospheric Turbulence and Refractivity on Laser Beam Propagation" Optics Express Vol. 25 Iss. 23 (2017)
Available at: http://works.bepress.com/mikhail_vorontsov/20/