Numerical Modeling of GPR Using Spectral-element Method in the Time Domain

Abstract

We present a spectral-element method, for simulation of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) in two dimensions. The technique is based upon a weak formulation of the equations of Maxwell and combines the flexibility of the elemental-based methods with the accuracy of the spectral-based methods. This work is the first attempt of applying SEM idea in GPR modeling that the presented formulations are with matrix notation. We used the SEM to simulate a complex model to show its abilities and limitations. As well as, one distinct advantage of SEM is that we can easily define our model features in nodal points, because the integration points and the interpolation points are similar that makes it very flexible in simulation of complex models. According the advantages of SEM to the finite-element method, time of calculations is reduced extremely and we need lower processing memory for the modeling. In this work we simulate GPR data for 2D inhomogeneous earth models. First brief mathematical background of the problem is reviewed then numerical results are presented, that the numerical results show the SEM radar wave simulation is accurate and effective in complex models.