• Korean Journal of Optics and Photonics
• /
• v.35 no.2
• /
• pp.49-60
• /
• 2024

We analyze the number of phase screens required for the simulation of a high-energy laser beam's propagation over an atmospheric channel. For high-energy lasers exceeding tens of kilowatts (kW) in power, the laser beam is mainly affected by atmospheric turbulence and thermal blooming. When using the split-step method to implement losses due to atmospheric absorption and scattering and distortion of the beam due to turbulence and thermal blooming, the number of phase screens is a critical factor in determining the accuracy and time required for the simulation. By comparing simulation results obtained using a large number of phase screens (e.g., 150 screens) under a wide range of atmospheric turbulence conditions, we provide new guidelines for the number of phase screens required for simulating the beam propagation of a high-power laser below 2.5×10⁶ W/m² (e.g., a 500-kW laser beam having a 50-cm diameter).