Evolution of Shannon entropy of random structured light beams in turbulence

This paper analyzes the disorder characteristics and evolution of Hermite-Gaussian correlated Schell-model beams with the help of Shannon entropy. Numerical results show that manipulating the optical coherence structure significantly affects the Shannon entropy distribution on the source plane. While random structured light beams have intrinsic disorder, their optical coherence structure helps reduce both intrinsic disorder and turbulence-induced disorder during propagation, improving beam quality. Compared to traditional Gaussian Schell-model beams, Hermite-Gaussian correlated Schell-model beams with prescribed optical coherence structure better mitigate turbulence-induced disorder. Furthermore, at higher-order beam parameter sets, their disorder mitigation effect is further enhanced. These findings highlight the potential of optical coherence structure engineering to mitigate turbulence effects.