Focal shift and focal switch of partially coherent flat-topped beams passing through an alignment and misalignment lens system with aperture

The focal shift and focal switch of partially coherent flat-topped (PCFT) beams passing through a lens system with an aperture are studied in detail. We have shown that a focal shift is also present for beams propagating through an aligned optical system and the amount of the focal shift depends not only on the radius aperture of the focusing system, but also on the spatial coherence and order of the flat-topped beam of the incident partially coherent light. A new phenomenon called ‘focal switch’ occurs for misaligned optical systems, i.e. the focal shift experiences a sudden transition as the aligned optical system becomes misaligned, and the influence of the spatial coherence, order of flat-topped beam and aperture size reduction, on the focal switch is investigated in detail. Finally, the necessary conditions for the focal switch to take place are investigated.