Fig. 1. (a) Concept of reconfigurable structured light beams generator employing a single SLM loop. (b) HOPS with $l=1$. (c) Overlapping degree between polarization distributions of vector beams in initial frames and vector beams in subsequent frames. (d) Experimental setup of reconfigurable structured light beams generator and fiber-coupling system. PC, polarization controller; Col, collimator; BS, beam splitter; PBS, polarization beam splitter; HWP, half-wave plate; QWP, quarter-wave plate; OL, objective lens; CCD, charge-coupled device (Video 1, mp4, 12.2 MB [URL: https://doi.org/10.1117/1.APN.2.3.036015.s1; Video 2, mp4, 12.1 MB [URL: https://doi.org/10.1117/1.APN.2.3.036015.s2).

Fig. 2. Polarization reconstruction of cylindrical vector beams. Measured intensity profiles of a vector beam with mode order $l=1$ after propagating through (a) an $x$-polarized polarizer; (b) a $y$-polarized polarizer; (c) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ directional QWP and an $x$-polarized polarizer; (d) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ polarizer; (e) a $-45\mathrm{deg}$ polarizer; (f) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ directional QWP and a $y$-polarized polarizer; (g) intensity profile and polarization distribution of the vector beam with mode order $l=1$. Measured intensity profiles of a vector beam with mode order $l=10$ after propagating through (h) an $x$-polarized polarizer; (i) a $y$-polarized polarizer; (j) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ directional QWP and an $x$-polarized polarizer; (k) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ polarizer; (l) a $-45\mathrm{deg}$ polarizer; (m) a $+45\mathrm{deg}$ directional QWP and a $y$-polarized polarizer; (n) intensity profile and polarization distribution of the vector beam with mode order $l=10$.

Fig. 3. Intensity profiles and polarization distributions of diverse seventh-order structured light beams generated in free space. (a), (b) $x$-polarized OAM beams, insets are interference intensity profiles of them. (c), (d) $x$-polarized LP beams. (e), (f) Circularly polarized OAM beams, insets are interference intensity profiles of them. (g), (h) Vector beams. (i)–(l) Four different vector beams; insets are intensity profiles of vector beams passing through different directional polarizers.

Fig. 4. Coupling losses of the fourth to seventh OAM and vector beams. RCP, right circular polarization; LCP, left circular polarization; and XP, $x$ polarization.

Fig. 5. Diverse seventh-order structured light beams after 5-m air–core fiber transmission, insets above figures (a)–(d) are their interference intensity profiles, respectively. (a), (b) $x$-polarized OAM beams; (c), (d) circularly polarized OAM beams; and (e)–(h) vector beams.