Similarity Study of Electromagnetic and Underwater Acoustic Scattering by Three-Dimensional Targets in Unbounded Space

Abstract

The characterization of targets by electromagnetic (EM) scattering and underwater acoustic scattering is an important object of research in these two related fields. However, there are some difficulties in the simulation and measurement of the scattering by large targets. Consequently, a similarity study between acoustic and EM scattering may help to share results between one domain and the other and even provide a general reference method for the simulation of scattering characteristics in both fields. Based on the method of physical optics, the similarity between the EM scattering of conductors and the acoustic scattering of soft/hard targets and the similarity between the EM scattering of dielectrics and the acoustic scattering of elastics are studied. In particular, we derive how to transfer quantities from one domain into another so that similar scattering patterns arise. Then, according to these transfer rules, the EM scattering and acoustic scattering of three typical targets with different types of boundaries were simulated and measured, and the simulated EM scattering and acoustic scattering curves were found to be in perfect agreement, with correlation coefficients above 0.93. The correlation coefficients between the electromagnetic and acoustic scattering patterns were above 0.98, 0.91, and 0.65 for three typical targets. The simulated and measured scattering results verify the proposed similarity theory of EM and acoustic scattering, including the transfer from one domain into the other and the conditions of EM and acoustic scattering, and illustrate that the acoustic scattering characteristic of the target can be simulated using the EM scattering based on the derived conditions and vice versa.