Propagation of electromagnetic stochastic beams in anisotropic turbulence

Abstract

The effects of anisotropic, non-Kolmogorov turbulence on propagating stochastic electromagnetic beam-like fields are discussed for the first time. The atmosphere of interest can be found above the boundary layer, at high (more than 2 km above the ground) altitudes where the energy distribution among the turbulent eddies might not satisfy the classic assumption represented by the famous 11/3 Kolmogorov's power law, and the anisotropy in the direction orthogonal to the Earth surface is possibly present. Our analysis focuses on the classic electromagnetic Gaussian Schell-model beams but can either be readily reduced to scalar and/or coherent beams or generalized to other beam classes. In particular, we explore the effects of the anisotropic parameter on the spectral density, the spectral degree of coherence and on the spectral degree of polarization of the beam.