Physical Optics Method: Prediction of Radar Signatures,

Abstract

The physical optics method finds increasing interest in the computation of radar signatures of complicated objects, which are large compared to the wavelength. A series of ideal conducting structures for which the physical optics method has been successfully applied to compute the back-scattered field is presented at first. The basic idea of physical optics following the Huygens-Helmholtz principle is evaluated. The surface integrals for the electromagnetic scattered field are presented and discussed. Some details of the physical optics method, when applied to complicated structures, are considered in the form of a short survey. This includes the hidden surface problem, the ability to predict depolarization effects for certain situations, the evaluation of the phase integral, the extension of physical optics to treat double reflections, the accuracy of the geometrical model and an estimation of the computer time. In the conclusion some steps for further extension and improvement of the physical optics method are summarized.

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jun 01, 1987
Accession Number
ADP005648

Entities

People

  • V. Stein

Tags

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Accuracy
  • Classification
  • Computations
  • Computers
  • Depolarization
  • Electromagnetic Wave Propagation
  • Integrals
  • Optics
  • Physics
  • Radar Signatures
  • Reflection
  • Target Classification
  • Wave Propagation

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Electromagnetic Wave Scattering and Antenna Radiation Engineering
  • Systems Analysis and Design