Dynamic focus shaping with mixed-aperture coherent beam combining

TL;DR

This paper introduces a new method for dynamic focus shaping using coherent beam combining with microlens arrays, enabling control over diffraction orders and demonstrated through experiments and simulations.

Contribution

It presents a novel approach combining microlens arrays with coherent beam combining for dynamic focus control, supported by experimental validation.

Findings

Successful demonstration of 5x5 beam combination

Ability to control diffraction order power weights

Potential for power scaling and dynamic focus shaping

Abstract

A novel concept for dynamic focus shaping based on highly efficient coherent beam combining with microlens arrays (MLA) as combining element is presented. This concept allows to control the power weights of diffraction orders by varying the absolute phases of an array of input beams. A proof-of-principle experiment is supported by simulations. For this, an input beam matrix of 5 x 5 beams is combined proving both the ability for further power scaling and dynamic focus shaping.