Microwave pulse optimization for low attenuation in lossy dispersive media

The problem of designing a microwave pulse to minimize its attenuation in dispersive media is solved by formulating an optimization problem at a given point. The solution that maximizes the total energy of the pulse is the impulse response of the medium and its time-reverse. This method is applied to a good conductor, a medium described by the Rocard-Powles-Debye model, and a two-layer medium. This method of solving the pulse design problem using optimization theory can be extended to include other optimization criteria and applied to design pulses for propagation in arbitrary dispersive media.