Reference-less complex wavefields characterization with a high-resolution wavefront sensor

TL;DR

This paper presents a high-resolution wavefront sensor technique for accurate, quantitative reconstruction of complex wavefields, including optical vortices, using a novel segmentation algorithm based on Stokes' theorem.

Contribution

The authors introduce a systematic, experimental method for complete wavefront characterization that effectively handles singular phase structures with a new segmentation approach.

Findings

Successful experimental reconstruction of complex wavefronts.

Accurate detection and localization of optical vortices.

Enhanced wavefield analysis capabilities for complex media.

Abstract

Wavefront sensing is a widely-used non-interferometric, single-shot, and quantitative technique providing the spatial-phase of a beam. The phase is obtained by integrating the measured wavefront gradient. Complex and random wavefields intrinsically contain a high density of singular phase structures (optical vortices) associated with non-conservative gradients making this integration step especially delicate. Here, using a high-resolution wavefront sensor, we demonstrate experimentally a systematic approach for achieving the complete and quantitative reconstruction of complex wavefronts. Based on the Stokes' theorem, we propose an image segmentation algorithm to provide an accurate determination of the charge and location of optical vortices. This technique is expected to benefit to several fields requiring complex media characterization.