Fresnel Double Scattering From Tree Branches

A Fresnel double scattering (FDS) method is presented in this paper to accurately and efficiently calculate the scattering cross section from two tree branches not necessarily in the far field of each other at L-band frequencies. The branches, modeled as dielectric cylinders, are assumed to have lengths comparable to one or more wavelengths. It is demonstrated that the FDS method provides a good approximation to the exact solutions of two branches modeled as one scatterer. The FDS method can be employed to study the double scattering effects between tree branches in microwave forest scattering models and accurately model a tree where single scatter and double scatter are the only important scattering mechanisms.