  In this work we investigate the properties of an Abelian gauge vector field
in a thin and in a smoothed string-like braneworld, the so-called string-cigar
model. This thick brane scenario satisfies the regularity conditions and it can
be regarded as an interior and exterior string-like solution. The source
undergoes a geometric Ricci flow which is connected to a variation of the bulk
cosmological constant. The Ricci flow changes the width and amplitude of the
massless mode at the brane core and recover the usual thin string-like behavior
at large distances. By numerical means we obtain the Kaluza-Klein (KK) spectrum
for both the thin brane and the string-cigar. It turns out that both models
exhibit a mass gap between the massless and the massive modes and between the
high and the low mass regimes. The KK modes are smooth near the brane and their
amplitude are enhanced by the string-cigar core. The analogue Schr\"odinger
potential is also tuned by the geometric flow.
