Power-Scalable Generation of High-Order Optical Vortices Via Coherent Beam Combining

Abstract: Structured light beams, such as optical vortices carrying orbital angular momentum, are essential for applications ranging from low-power optical communications to high-intensity laser-matter interactions. However, scaling their power and energy while preserving complex phase and spatial structures remains a fundamental challenge. In this work, we demonstrate coherent beam combining as a versatile and scalable method for generating high-power structured beams without limitations on topological charge or spatial structure, while maintaining exceptionally high modal purity. We experimentally implement coherent beam combining for optical vortex beams with topological charges l = 1, 5, and 8, achieving a combined average power of 100 W and a peak power of 100 kW, with combining efficiencies of 95.0%, 93.9%, and 91.2%, respectively. Off-axis digital holography confirms that the phase and intensity profiles of the combined beams retain high modal purity, even at high topological charges. These results establish coherent beam combining as an effective route to high modal purity structured light at high power levels, unlocking new opportunities for advanced photonics and high-intensity light-matter interaction studies.