Spiral-type beams: Optical and quantum aspects

The existence of spiral-type beams with a predetermined intensity distribution is investigated by theoretical and experimental means. Spiral-type beams with an intensity distribution in the form of an arbitrary planar line were found. A correspondence between these laser beams and a specific quantum-mechanical situation - ground states of a charged particle in a uniform magnetic field - was found. The connection between spiral-type beams and coherent states is shown. Some methods of spiral-type beam synthesis are described. Experimental results of transformation of a gaussian beam into a triangle-line laser beam are presented.