The backscattered field of a thin wire loop for H-polarization

Abstract

For a thin wire loop illuminated by a plane electromagnetic wave, the backscattered field is determined when the incident magnetic vector is parallel to the plane of the loop. The complete second-order geometrical theory of diffraction (GTD) solution is obtained and found to be in excellent agreement with numerical data at angles close to normal incidence on the loop. At wide angles, however, the data exhibit a significant lobe that is not predicted by GTD. Analysis of the data shows that the lobe is due to currents circulating around the loop and the properties of these currents are deduced. Using a simple model for the current, the corresponding contribution to the backscattered field is determined. When this is added to the GTD solution, the resulting expression for the backscattered field is in good agreement with the numerical data for all angles of incidence and all loop diameters greater than a wavelength.