Generation and self-healing of a radially polarized Bessel-Gauss beam

We report experimental generation of a radially polarized Bessel-Gauss (RPBG) beam of order 1 with the help of a spatial light modulator, a spiral phase plate, and a radial polarization converter. Furthermore, we carry out a comparative study of the self-healing properties of a RPBG beam and a linearly polarized Bessel-Gauss (LPBG) beam which are blocked by a sector-shaped opaque obstacle both experimentally and numerically. Our results clearly show that the self-healing ability of a RPBG beam indeed is superior to that of a LPBG beam, and some physical interpretations are given. Our results will be useful for particle trapping and microscopy.