Reflections and transmissions from a porous layer sandwiched between seawater and solid substrate

Abstract

Ocean sediments are composed of a porous layer sandwiched between seawater and a solid elastic base. The reflection and transmission of acoustic waves from ocean sediments are essential in ocean engineering, seafloor seismology, etc. The existing reflection and transmission (R/T) formulas are determined by complex matrix equations in the order of 9 × 9 or higher. To obtain more concise R/T coefficient formulas, we established the propagator matrix of the coupled water-porous-layer-solid elastic system, wherein the above-water is ideal and the middle porous marine sediment is defined by the Biot–Stoll model. Based on the propagator matrix, the displacement R/T coefficients were given by a 3 × 3 matrix equation for two P-wave incidence cases: the down-going case from the water, and the up-going case from the ocean floor. For zero-frequency or zero-thickness limitation, the proposed R/T coefficient formulas are the same as the displacement R/T coefficients at a single fluid–solid interface. The numerical results of the reflected or transmitted waves in the above-water show that the R/T coefficients exhibit regular variations at frequencies far lower than the characteristic frequency. The R/T coefficient amplitudes decreased with increasing frequency at a fixed incidence angle and ratio between the thickness and wavelength.