Abstract

There are three reasons that relate partially coherent light to statistical quantum mechanics. First, it is shown that in the waist of a light beam the wave equation takes on the form of the time-independent Schrodinger equation.¹ For a subclass of laser beams (for instance rotationally symmetrical beams), one waist with a plane wavefront exists. For these beams the wave equation has the form of a two-dimensional Schrodinger equation. Otherwise (for instance, astigmatic beams), we consider two one-dimensional Schrödinger equations in x and y directions, respectively.

© 1994 IEEE