Coherence Properties of Optical Fields II Study of Experiments Described by Fourth-Order Coherence Functions
Etienne Boileau, B. Picinbono · Journal of the Optical Society of America · 1968
The higher-order coherence functions of optical fields involving phase fluctuations have not yet been studied extensively. We discuss here an experiment which can in principle yield the fourth-order coherence function. This experiment is a study of the correlation function of the irradiance fluctuations obtained in some interference experiments. Two kinds of delay are then used: optical delays in the interferometer and electrical delays with suitable variations in the correlator.The results of the experiment are calculated theoretically with a particular statistical model of laser light. The possibility of using a spectrum analyzer instead of a correlator is discussed.