Numerical investigation of flat-topped vortex hollow beams and Bessel beams propagating in a turbulent atmosphere.

In this paper, the aperture averaged scintillation, mean signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), and average bit error rate (BER) for both flat-topped vortex hollow beams and Bessel beams propagating in a turbulent atmosphere are evaluated. Investigations are also made illustrating the variation of aperture averaged scintillation, mean SNR, and average BER against the beam type, propagation distance, and size of the receiver aperture. Compared with the flat-topped vortex hollow beams, the Bessel beams have a smaller aperture averaged scintillation, higher mean SNR, and lower average BER when the receiver aperture is relatively small under the same conditions. (C) 2016 Optical Society of America