Experimental and theoretical investigations on scattering by finite cylinders with varying cross section

The authors consider the problem of computing the scattered fields from a class of finite cylinders whose cross-section varies slowly along the axis of the cylinder. An approximate technique is devised to obtain the currents induced on the surface of the target. This technique consists of approximating the current on a slice of the cylinder to be the same as that on an infinite cylinder with the same cross-section. This procedure reduces the computation of the current on the surface of a 3-D body to computing the current in a series of 2-D problems. This theory was tested on ogival and elliptical cylinders of various sizes. Scattered fields were measured at 3, 6, and 10 GHz for both TE (transverse electric) and TM (transverse magnetic) polarizations and for backscattering. These measurements are compared to theoretical results computed based on the theory presented. A salient feature of this technique is the numerical efficiency.<>