A Hallen-type integral equation for symmetric scattering from lossy circular disks

A rigorous technique is presented for calculating the current induced on a thin lossy disk by rotationally symmetric sources, and the resulting scattered field. A Hallen-type integral equation is developed for the current using the magnetic vector potential, and it is solved by the method of moments. It is shown that the diffraction lobes usually associated with radiation above a finite circular ground plane can be reduced dramatically by the addition of loss. Application to a quarter-wave monopole radiating above a finite circular perfectly conducting ground plane shows good agreement with experiment