A 3-D Stochastic FDTD Model of Electromagnetic Wave Propagation in Magnetized Ionosphere Plasma

A stochastic finite-difference time-domain (S-FDTD) algorithm is presented for electromagnetic-wave propagation in anisotropic magnetized plasma. This new algorithm efficiently calculates in a single simulation not only the mean electromagnetic field values, but also their variance as caused by the variability or uncertainty of the electron and ion content of the ionosphere. The structure of the ionosphere is often too variable and uncertain for electromagnetic-wave propagation problems to be solved using a deterministic formulation, particularly during space weather events. For these cases, the S-FDTD ionospheric plasma algorithm will serve as an important tool. For example, it could be used to determine the confidence level at which a communications or remote sensing or radar system will operate as expected under abnormal ionospheric conditions.