Longitudinal shift and transformation of a Gaussian beam upon reflection from a thin film

Specific features of deformation of a Gaussian beam reflected from a thin film are studied on the basis of numerical analysis. A complex deformation of its profile is shown to be governed by three factors: by the character of behavior of the reflectance close to the angle of incidence, the Goos-Hanchen longitudinal shift, and by the shift in the direction of incidence of the beam, which is caused by the presence of the film-substrate interface. An approximate expression for the displacement of the “center of gravity” of the reflected beam is obtained.