Depolarization and scattering of electromagnetic waves by irregular boundaries for arbitrary incident and scatter angles full-wave solutions

Abstract

Explicit expressions are presented for the radiation fields scattered by rough surfaces. Both electric and magnetic dipole sources are assumed, thus excitations of both vertically and horizontally polarized waves are considered. The solutions are based on a full-wave approach which employs complete field expansions and exact boundary conditions at the irregular boundary. The scattering and depolarization coefficients axe derived for arbitrary incident and scatter angles. When the observation point is at the source these scattering coefficients are related to the backscatter cross section per unit area. Solutions based on the approximate impedance boundary condition are also given, and the suitability of these approximations are examined. The solutions are presented in a form that is suitable for use by engineers who may not be familiar with the analytical techniques and they may be readily compared with earlier solutions to the problem. The full-wave solutions are shown to satisfy the reciprocity relationships in electromagnetic theory, and they can be applied directly to problems of scattering and depolarization by periodic and random rough surfaces.