Features of polarimetric terrestrial wave propagation

A novel polarimetric wave propagation model was introduced by M. Lebherz et al. (IEEE Trans. on Antennas Prop., vol.40, no.2, 1992). The model requires a digital terrain data bank and considers multipath propagation. An application of this model to polarimetric investigations of terrestrial radio links in the VHF/UHF frequency range is presented. Based on the UTD and physical optics (PO), an approach is described for calculating the propagation effects in natural 3D terrain, given by topological and morphological data. The influence of real terrain on the polarimetric propagation properties is considered, and typical polarization signatures of multipath propagation are presented. Based on the derived polarimetric signatures, investigations of optimum polarization states for minimum polarization loss and clutter suppression can be performed.<>