Electromagnetic scattering from targets above rough surfaces

In this paper, an analytical solution for predicting the near-field interaction between a scatterer and a rough surface is presented. This solution is derived using a novel technique based on the reciprocity theorem. This approach is extremely efficient, since only the current distribution of isolated scatterers are needed to evaluate the interaction in the far-field region. In specific, the second moments of the backscatter fields forming a circular dielectric cylinder above a slightly rough surface with inhomogeneous dielectric profile are derived. The accuracy of the theoretical formulation is verified by conducting polarimetric backscatter measurements from a lossy dielectric cylinder above a slightly rough surface. Excellent agreement between the theoretical prediction and experimental results is obtained.