Extracting coherent modes from partially coherent wavefields

Abstract

A method for numerically recovering the coherent modes and their occupancies from a known mutual optical intensity function is described. As an example, the technique is applied to previously published experimental data from an x-ray undulator source. The data are found to be described by three coherent modes, and the functional forms and relative occupancies of these modes are recovered. © 2009 Optical Society of America.