Asian Journal of Physics Vol. 34, Nos 7 & 8 (2025) 439-451

Comparative analysis of Gaussian and Bessel-Gaussian vortex beams with higher topological charges in a turbulent atmosphere

Neha Choudhary, Allarakha Shikder, and Naveen K Nishchal
Department of Physics, Indian Institute of Technology Patna, Bihta, Patna-801 106, Bihar, India
Dedicated to Prof Kehar Singh on the occasion of his 84th Birthday on July 3, 2025

Optical communication systems have attracted popularity in recent years owing to their potential to transmit data at high speeds over long distances with substantial bandwidth. In a free space optical communication system, data is transmitted through free space using light beams, which are susceptible to distortions due to irregular fluctuations in the refractive index of air media, which result from variations in temperature, pressure, and humidity. Structured light beams having orbital angular momentum (OAM) are known to be resilient to atmospheric turbulence and can enhance the reliability of free-space optical communication systems. Structured light beams also offer a strong platform for achieving high-capacity and secure optical communication, as their spiral phase fronts with defined topological charges (TCs) allow the use of multiple distinct OAM modes for parallel data transmission. Vortex beams with larger TC offer access to a broader set of OAM modes, offering more data channels for transmitting information. This study investigates the propagation behaviour of Gaussian and Bessel-Gaussian vortex beams with higher TCs under atmospheric turbulence. Using numerical simulations based on the Kolmogorov turbulence model, we analyze the beam wandering effect and intensity variations in a turbulent atmosphere. Additionally, various statistical parameters have been studied, like scintillation index, correlation coefficient, peak signal-to-noise ratio, and mean square error, to quantitatively assess the quality and reliability of the beams with higher TCs. © Anita Publications. All rights reserved.
Doi: XXX
Keywords: Orbital angular momentum, Topological charge, Gaussian vortex beams, Bessel-Gaussian beams, Atmospheric turbulence.

Peer Review Information
Method: Single- anonymous; Screened for Plagiarism? Yes
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References

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  34. Nelson W, Palastro J P, Davis C C, Sprangle P, Propagation of Bessel and Airy beams through atmospheric turbulence J Opt Soc Am A, 31(2014)603–609.
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  38. Orlov S, Regeleskis K, Smilgevicius V, Stabinis A, Propagation of Bessel beams carrying optical vortices, Opt Commun, 209(2002)155–165.
  39. Tao S H, Yuan X C, Self-reconstruction property of fractional Bessel beams, J Opt Soc Am A, 21(2004)1192–1197.
  40. Zhu J, Zhang H, Wang Z, Zhao X, Lu X, Cai Y, Zhao C, Coherence singularity and evolution of partially coherent Bessel–Gaussian vortex beams, Opt Express, 31(2023)9308–9318.
  41. Lukin I P, Coherence of a Bessel beam in a turbulent atmosphere, Atmos Oceanic Opt, 25(2012)328–337.
  42. Shikder A, Choudhary N, Nishchal N K, Free-space propagation properties of Gaussian vortex and Bessel-Gaussian vortex beams having fractional topological charges in turbulent medium, J Opt, 27(2025)065603; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2022.129243.
  43. Arlt J, Dholakia K, Generation of high-order Bessel beams by use of an axicon, Opt Commun, 177(2000)297–301.
  44. Panchal P, Naik D N, Narayanamurthy C S, Insensitivity of higher order topologically charged Laguerre–Gaussian beams to dynamic turbulence impact, Opt Commun, 495(2021)127023; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2022.129243.
  45. Yuan Y, Lei T, Li Z, Li Y, Gao S, Xie Z, Yuan X, Beam wander relieved orbital angular momentum communication in turbulent atmosphere using Bessel beams. Sci Rep, 7(2017)42276; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  46. Baliyan M, Shikder A, Nishchal N K, Generation of structured light beams by dual phase modulation with a single spatial light modulator, Phys Scr, 98(2023)105528; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  47. Rao A S, A conceptual review on Bessel beams, Phys Scr, 99(2024)062007; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  48. Baliyan M, Nishchal N K, Generating scalar and vector modes of Bessel beams utilizing holographic axicon phase with spatial light modulator, J Opt, 25(2023)095702; doi.org/10.1088/2040-8986.
  49. Rosales-Guzmán C, Forbes A, How to Shape Light with Spatial Light Modulators?, Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), 2017.
  50. Voelz D G, Computational Fourier Optics: A MATLAB Tutorial, (SPIE Press), 2011; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  51. Jomy A, Mehta S, Jacob J, Anirudh S, Krishna D K, Kumar R, Gondhalekar J, Adheena C K, Jeevan M, Akshay M S, Mohan N, Narayanamurthy C S, Pathak B, Experimental arrangement to study the impact of atmospheric turbulence on user-defined beams, Rev Sci Instrum, 96(2025)015109; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  52. Zhao S, Zhang W, Wang L, Li W, Gong L, Cheng W, Chen H, Gruska J, Propagation and self-healing properties of Bessel-Gaussian beam carrying orbital angular momentum in an underwater environment, Sci Rep, 9(2019)2025; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  53. Rao S K, Nishchal N K, AlFalou A, Optical asymmetric image encryption using vectorial light field encoding, Opt Commun, 554(2024)130097; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2023.130097.

Zhu Z, Janasik M, Fyffe A, Hay D, Zhou Y, Kantor B, Winder T, Robert W B, Leuchs G, Shi Z, Compensation-free high-dimensional free-space optical communication using turbulence-resilient vector beams, Nat Commun, 12(2021)1666; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.

  1. Majumdar A K, Ricklin JC. Free-space laser communications: principles and advances, (Springer Science & Business Media), Vol 2, 2010.
  2. Khalighi M A, Uysal M, Survey on free space optical communication: a communication theory perspective, IEEE Commun Surv Tutor, 16(2014)2231–2258.
  3. Cathey W T, Optical Information Processing and Holography, (John Wiley & Sons, Inc),1989.
  4. Nishchal NK, Optical Cryptosystems, (IOP Publs, UK), 2019.
  5. Martelli P, Gatto A, Boffi P, Martinelli M, Free-space optical transmission with orbital angular momentum division multiplexing. Electron Lett, 47(2011)972–973.
  6. Kaushal H, Kaddoum G, Optical communication in space: Challenges and mitigation techniques. IEEE Commun Surv Tutor, 19(2016)57–96.
  7. Khare K, Lochab P, Senthilkumaran P, Orbital angular momentum states of light: propagation through atmospheric turbulence. (IOP Publs, UK), 2024.
  8. Andrews L C, Field Guide to Atmospheric Optics, (SPIE Press, Bellingham, USA), 2004.
  9. Andrews L C, Phillips R L, Laser Beam Propagation through Random Media, (SPIE Press, Bellingham, USA), 2005.
  10. Kolmogorov A N, Dissipation of energy in the locally isotropic turbulence, Proc R Soc Lond Ser A Math Phys Sci, 434(1991)15–17.
  11. Augustine S M, Chetty N, Experimental verification of the turbulent effects on laser beam propagation in space, Atmósfera, 27(2014)385-401.
  12. Kaushal H, Kumar V, Dutta A, Aennam H, Jain V K, Kar S, Joseph J, Experimental study on beam wander under varying atmospheric turbulence conditions, IEEE Photonics Technol Lett, 23(2011)1691–1693.
  13. Cheng M, Guo L, Li J, Zhang Y, Channel capacity of the OAM-based free-space optical communication links with Bessel-Gauss beams in turbulent ocean, IEEE Photonics J, 8(2016)1–11.
  14. Zhao J, Li X, Meng F, Liu T, Ren Y, Liu Z, Wang C, Advanced-prediction compensation of distorted vortex beams in dynamic turbulence using a pre-correction network, Opt Lasers Eng, 169(2023)107686; doi.org/10.1016/j.optlaseng.2023.107686.
  15. Balasubramaniam G M, Manavalan G, Arnon S, Propagation of Laguerre-Gaussian beam intensities through optically thick turbid media, Sci Rep, 15(2025)1–10.
  16. Tyson R K, Frazier B W, Principles of Adaptive Optics, (CRC Press),
  17. van Kooten M, Doelman N, Kenworthy M, Impact of time-variant turbulence behavior on prediction for adaptive optics systems. J Opt Soc Am A, 36(2019)731–740.
  18. Ghoshroy A, Davis J, Moazzam A A, Askari R, Güney D Ö, Enhancing complex light beam propagation in turbulent atmosphere with active convolved illumination. ACS Photonics, 11(2024)4541–4558.
  19. Wen W, Quantitative analysis of the effect of atmospheric turbulence on a Bessel-Gaussian beam. Photonics, 10(2023)932; doi.org/10.3390/photonics10080932.
  20. Klug A, Peters C, Forbes A, Robust structured light in atmospheric turbulence, Adv Photon, 5(2023)016006–016006.
  21. Forbes A, De Oliveira M, Dennis M R, Structured light. Nat Photonics, 15(2021)253–262.
  22. Allen L, Beijersbergen M W, Spreeuw R J, Woerdman J P, Orbital angular momentum of light and the transformation of Laguerre-Gaussian laser modes, Phys Rev A ,45(1992)8185–8189.
  23. Shen Y, Wang X, Xie Z, Min C, Fu X, Liu Q, Yuan X, Optical vortices 30 years on: OAM manipulation from topological charge to multiple singularities, Light: Sci Appl, 8(2019)90; doi.org/10.3390/photonics10080932.
  24. Forbes A, De Oliveira M, Dennis MR, Structured light, Nat Photonics, 15(2021)253–262.
  25. Lian Y, Qi X, Wang Y, Bai Z, Wang Y, Lu Z, OAM beam generation in space and its applications: A review, Opt Lasers Eng, 151(2022)106923; doi.org/10.1016/j.optlaseng.2021.106923.
  26. Kumar R, Shikder A, Nishchal N K, AlFalou A, Topological charge identification of vortex beams through optical correlation, IEEE Photonics Technol Lett, 35(2023)1315–1318.
  27. Shikder A, Mohapatra J B, Nishchal N K, Fractional topological charge measurement through optical correlation, Opt Lett, 49(2024)2017–2020.
  28. Eyyuboğlu H T, Baykal Y, Ji X, Scintillations of Laguerre Gaussian beams, Appl Phys B, 98(2010)857–863.
  29. Bouchal Z, Resistance of nondiffracting vortex beam against amplitude and phase perturbations. Opt Commun, 210(2002)155–164.
  30. Shikder A, Nishchal N K, Image encryption using binary polarization states of light beam, Sci Rep, 13(2023)14028; doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41251-w.
  31. Shikder A, Kumar P, Nishchal N K, Image encryption by structured phase encoding and its effectiveness in turbulent medium, IEEE Photon Technol Lett, 35(2022)128–131.
  32. Fu S, Gao C, Influences of atmospheric turbulence effects on the orbital angular momentum spectra of vortex beams, Photon Res, 4(2016)B1–B4.
  33. Lekshmi S R, Narayanamurthy C S, Robustness of partially coherent vortex beams to the impact of dynamic Kolmogorov kind of turbulence, Phys Scr, 99(2024)035507; doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41251-w.
  34. Nelson W, Palastro J P, Davis C C, Sprangle P, Propagation of Bessel and Airy beams through atmospheric turbulence J Opt Soc Am A, 31(2014)603–609.
  35. Durnin J J, Miceli J J (Jr), Eberly J H, Diffraction-free beams, Phys Rev Lett, 58(1987)1499; doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-41251-w.
  36. Kumar P, Nishchal N K, Realizing singular beams through dual-phase modulation, Asian J Phys, 30(2021)1355–1364.
  37. Lekshmi S R, Narayanamurthy C S, The resilience of zero order Bessel-Gaussian beams to the impact of dynamic Kolmogorov type of turbulence, Opt Commun, 532(2023)129243; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2022.129243.
  38. Orlov S, Regeleskis K, Smilgevicius V, Stabinis A, Propagation of Bessel beams carrying optical vortices, Opt Commun, 209(2002)155–165.
  39. Tao S H, Yuan X C, Self-reconstruction property of fractional Bessel beams, J Opt Soc Am A, 21(2004)1192–1197.
  40. Zhu J, Zhang H, Wang Z, Zhao X, Lu X, Cai Y, Zhao C, Coherence singularity and evolution of partially coherent Bessel–Gaussian vortex beams, Opt Express, 31(2023)9308–9318.
  41. Lukin I P, Coherence of a Bessel beam in a turbulent atmosphere, Atmos Oceanic Opt, 25(2012)328–337.
  42. Shikder A, Choudhary N, Nishchal N K, Free-space propagation properties of Gaussian vortex and Bessel-Gaussian vortex beams having fractional topological charges in turbulent medium, J Opt, 27(2025)065603; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2022.129243.
  43. Arlt J, Dholakia K, Generation of high-order Bessel beams by use of an axicon, Opt Commun, 177(2000)297–301.
  44. Panchal P, Naik D N, Narayanamurthy C S, Insensitivity of higher order topologically charged Laguerre–Gaussian beams to dynamic turbulence impact, Opt Commun, 495(2021)127023; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2022.129243.
  45. Yuan Y, Lei T, Li Z, Li Y, Gao S, Xie Z, Yuan X, Beam wander relieved orbital angular momentum communication in turbulent atmosphere using Bessel beams. Sci Rep, 7(2017)42276; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  46. Baliyan M, Shikder A, Nishchal N K, Generation of structured light beams by dual phase modulation with a single spatial light modulator, Phys Scr, 98(2023)105528; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  47. Rao A S, A conceptual review on Bessel beams, Phys Scr, 99(2024)062007; doi.org/10.1038/srep42276.
  48. Baliyan M, Nishchal N K, Generating scalar and vector modes of Bessel beams utilizing holographic axicon phase with spatial light modulator, J Opt, 25(2023)095702; doi.org/10.1088/2040-8986.
  49. Rosales-Guzmán C, Forbes A, How to Shape Light with Spatial Light Modulators?, Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers (SPIE), 2017.
  50. Voelz D G, Computational Fourier Optics: A MATLAB Tutorial, (SPIE Press), 2011; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  51. Jomy A, Mehta S, Jacob J, Anirudh S, Krishna D K, Kumar R, Gondhalekar J, Adheena C K, Jeevan M, Akshay M S, Mohan N, Narayanamurthy C S, Pathak B, Experimental arrangement to study the impact of atmospheric turbulence on user-defined beams, Rev Sci Instrum, 96(2025)015109; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  52. Zhao S, Zhang W, Wang L, Li W, Gong L, Cheng W, Chen H, Gruska J, Propagation and self-healing properties of Bessel-Gaussian beam carrying orbital angular momentum in an underwater environment, Sci Rep, 9(2019)2025; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.
  53. Rao S K, Nishchal N K, AlFalou A, Optical asymmetric image encryption using vectorial light field encoding, Opt Commun, 554(2024)130097; doi.org/10.1016/j.optcom.2023.130097.

Zhu Z, Janasik M, Fyffe A, Hay D, Zhou Y, Kantor B, Winder T, Robert W B, Leuchs G, Shi Z, Compensation-free high-dimensional free-space optical communication using turbulence-resilient vector beams, Nat Commun, 12(2021)1666; doi.org/10.1117/3.858456.

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