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Photonics
Special Issues
Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light
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Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light

A special issue of Photonics (ISSN 2304-6732). This special issue belongs to the section "Optical Interaction Science".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 10 October 2026 | Viewed by 2401

Special Issue Editors

Prof. Dr. Yongtao Zhang

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Guest Editor
School of Physics and Information Engineering, Minnan Normal University, Zhangzhou, China
Interests: optical singularity; orbital angular momentum; partially coherence; propagation property; coherence structure
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Dr. Xinlei Zhu

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Physics and Electronics, Shandong Normal University, Jinan, China
Interests: optical coherence; coherence structure; propagation; optical tweezers
Dr. Jing Wang

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
School of Applied Science, Taiyuan University of Science and Technology, Taiyuan, China
Interests: beam transport and control; coherence structure; orbital angular momentum; atmospheric turbulence

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Coherence is an intrinsic property of a light field, arising from correlations between two or more different spatial or temporal points of fluctuating electric fields. The well-known van Cittert–Zernike theorem demonstrates that a spatially incoherent source will generate a spatially coherent field in the process of propagation. The spatial coherence properties of a light source may cause changes in its spectrum, degree of polarization, and angular momentum. The propagation and coherence of light play a significant role in a wide range of applications, such as free-space optical communication and light–matter interaction.

We invite contributions that explore the theme of this Special Issue, which is titled “Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light”. Theoretical, numerical, and experimental papers are welcome. Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following research areas:

  • Spatial coherent properties of light;
  • Temporal coherent properties of light;
  • Propagation of light fields with different spatial and temporal coherence states;
  • Structured light sources with different coherence states;
  • Spatio-temporal coherent light fields;
  • Propagation of light fields with spatio-temporal coherence;
  • Partially coherent light fields;
  • The effect of optical coherence on the interaction of light with different media.

Prof. Dr. Yongtao Zhang
Dr. Xinlei Zhu
Dr. Jing Wang
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Photonics is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • spatial coherence
  • temporal coherence
  • spatio-temporal coherence
  • coherence structures
  • structured light
  • light field propagation
  • partial coherence

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (5 papers)

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23 pages, 1633 KB  
Article
Intensity Profile Reshaping of a Spectrally Broadened Gaussian Beam
by Sofiane Haddadi, Abdelhalim Bencheikh, Michael Fromager and Kamel Aït-Ameur
Photonics 2026, 13(4), 388; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13040388 - 17 Apr 2026
Viewed by 128
Abstract
Research into the spatial reshaping of monochromatic laser beams grew significantly in the late 1990s due to improvements in the fabrication of diffractive optical elements. Nowadays, some applications, such as optical coherence tomography, necessitate the use of broadband light beams with a spectral [...] Read more.
Research into the spatial reshaping of monochromatic laser beams grew significantly in the late 1990s due to improvements in the fabrication of diffractive optical elements. Nowadays, some applications, such as optical coherence tomography, necessitate the use of broadband light beams with a spectral width of hundreds of nanometers. The difficulty in reshaping such spectrally broadened beams lies in the wavelength dependence of the beam shaping process. This paper presents a numerical study of the wavelength dependence of two beam shaping techniques that allow a Gaussian beam to be transformed into a flat-top or doughnut intensity profile in the focal plane of a focusing lens. The first technique is based on the diffraction of an incident Gaussian beam passing through a simple binary diffractive optical element. The second technique can be described as an interferometric method, as it involves the coaxial superposition of two Gaussian beams emerging from a Michelson interferometer. We compared the stability of these two techniques’ ability to reshape the beam versus the spectral bandwidth of the incident Gaussian beam. We showed that the interferometric method is more resilient than the diffractive method to changes in the spectral bandwidth of the Gaussian beam. We also considered the case of a quasi-monochromatic beam delivered by a widely tunable laser and reshaped using the interferometric method, where the dispersion of beam reshaping could be mitigated by two programmable liquid lenses that enable control of the curvature of the Michelson interferometer mirrors. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light)
13 pages, 1278 KB  
Article
Four-State Programmable Quasi-BIC Metasurface with Polarization-Divergent Dispersion Rewriting
by Wenbin Wang and Yun Meng
Photonics 2026, 13(2), 105; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13020105 - 23 Jan 2026
Viewed by 593
Abstract
A central challenge in reconfigurable photonics based on quasi bound states in the continuum (quasi-BICs) is to move beyond binary switching toward multistate and polarization-aware programmability. Here we propose a dual-phase-change material (PCM) metasurface that enables four-state nonvolatile switching and polarization-divergent dispersion rewriting [...] Read more.
A central challenge in reconfigurable photonics based on quasi bound states in the continuum (quasi-BICs) is to move beyond binary switching toward multistate and polarization-aware programmability. Here we propose a dual-phase-change material (PCM) metasurface that enables four-state nonvolatile switching and polarization-divergent dispersion rewriting within a single unit cell. Two independently switchable PCM layers provide four addressable configurations (0-0, 0-1, 1-0, 1-1) at a fixed geometry, allowing the resonance landscape to be reprogrammed through complex-index rewriting without structural modification. Angle-resolved transmission maps reveal fundamentally different evolution pathways for orthogonal polarizations. For p polarization, the quasi-BIC exhibits strong state sensitivity with dispersion reshaping and multi-branch features near normal incidence; the resonance red-shifts from ~1331 nm to ~1355 nm while the quality factor decreases from ~6.7 × 104 to ~4.0 × 104. In contrast, for s polarization, a single weakly dispersive branch translates coherently across states, producing a much larger shift from ~1635 nm to ~1790 nm while the quality factor increases from ~9.0 × 103 to ~1.8 × 104. The opposite quality-factor trajectories, together with the polarization-contrasting tuning ranges, demonstrate that dual-PCM programming reconfigures polarization-selective radiative coupling rather than imposing a uniform resonance shift. This compact two-bit metasurface platform provides multistate, high-Q control with active dispersion engineering, enabling polarization-multiplexed reconfigurable filters, state-addressable sensors, and other programmable photonic devices. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light)
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10 pages, 3678 KB  
Article
Shannon Entropy of Laguerre-Gaussian Correlated Schell-Model Beams in Underwater Turbulence
by Zhiyuan Hu, Ruilin Liu, Wenjie Yin, Jiayi Yu, Yangjian Cai and Rong Lin
Photonics 2026, 13(1), 9; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics13010009 - 24 Dec 2025
Viewed by 448
Abstract
This study examines the evolution of Shannon entropy, a key measure of uncertainty and disorder, in a Laguerre-Gaussian correlated Schell-model (LGcSM) beam under ocean turbulence. We explore how the spatial coherence distribution of the LGcSM beam influences its Shannon entropy in both free [...] Read more.
This study examines the evolution of Shannon entropy, a key measure of uncertainty and disorder, in a Laguerre-Gaussian correlated Schell-model (LGcSM) beam under ocean turbulence. We explore how the spatial coherence distribution of the LGcSM beam influences its Shannon entropy in both free space and ocean turbulent conditions. Our results show that tailoring the optical coherence distribution can significantly control spatial disorder, enabling the beam to restore order under turbulence. Furthermore, we analyze the impact of various ocean turbulence parameters on Shannon entropy evolution, offering a potential strategy to mitigate performance degradation in optical communication systems affected by turbulence. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light)
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16 pages, 1413 KB  
Article
The Influence of Oceanic Turbulence on Fiber-Coupling Efficiency of Multi-Gaussian Shell-Mode Beams for Underwater Optical Communications
by Xiaonan Jing, Shan Lv, Jiqian Zhang, Hui Zhang, Yaru Gao, Yangsheng Yuan, Yangjian Cai and Dongmei Wei
Photonics 2025, 12(12), 1234; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics12121234 - 17 Dec 2025
Viewed by 312
Abstract
This study theoretically investigates the coupling efficiency of multi-Gaussian Shell-mode (MGSM) beams in ocean turbulence. The expression for the fiber-coupling efficiency of the MGSM beams propagating through oceanic turbulent media is derived using the cross-spectral density function. Numerical simulations are performed to examine [...] Read more.
This study theoretically investigates the coupling efficiency of multi-Gaussian Shell-mode (MGSM) beams in ocean turbulence. The expression for the fiber-coupling efficiency of the MGSM beams propagating through oceanic turbulent media is derived using the cross-spectral density function. Numerical simulations are performed to examine the relationship between fiber-coupling efficiency and the beam order, and the scintillation index of the MGSM beams in ocean turbulence is also examined. In the analysis of transmission efficiency, the effects of the receiving aperture and source coherence on transmission efficiency are investigated, taking into account ocean turbulence induced by salinity and temperature fluctuations. The analysis of the fiber-coupling efficiency for MGSM beams presented in this work provides insights for optimizing the design of free-space optical communication systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light)
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13 pages, 2868 KB  
Article
Propagation Properties of the COAM Matrix of Twisted Gaussian Schell-Model Beams in Non-Kolmogorov Turbulence
by Jie Miao, Jing Wang, Xianmei Qian, Wenyue Zhu, Yongtao Zhang and Jinhong Li
Photonics 2025, 12(12), 1195; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics12121195 - 4 Dec 2025
Viewed by 428
Abstract
Based on the extended Huygens–Fresnel principle and mode expansion theory, we derive the expression for the Coherence-Orbital Angular Momentum (COAM) matrix of twisted Gaussian Schell-model (TGSM) beams propagating through non-Kolmogorov turbulence. Using numerical simulations, we compare the evolution characteristics of the COAM matrix [...] Read more.
Based on the extended Huygens–Fresnel principle and mode expansion theory, we derive the expression for the Coherence-Orbital Angular Momentum (COAM) matrix of twisted Gaussian Schell-model (TGSM) beams propagating through non-Kolmogorov turbulence. Using numerical simulations, we compare the evolution characteristics of the COAM matrix in free space and under non-Kolmogorov turbulence conditions. The study analyzes the variation patterns in the absolute values, real parts, and imaginary parts of the COAM matrix elements under different topological charges, and provides a detailed investigation of the influence of various beam parameters and turbulence parameters on these elements. The results show that by selecting appropriate parameters, the negative impact of turbulence on the correlation between orbital angular momentum (OAM) modes can be effectively mitigated. This work provides theoretical support for parameter selection and optimization in atmospheric optical communication systems. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Advances in the Propagation and Coherence of Light)
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