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The rough structure may affect the flow field and electromagnetic (EM) scattering characteristics of a hypersonic vehicle. In this study, the EM scattering characteristics of the hypersonic vehicle RAM C-II with a microrough surface were investigated in the millimeter wave band. We first simulated the flow field of a smooth RAM C-II vehicle and calculated the radar cross section (RCS) in the wideband using the physical optics method. The calculation results show that many factors contribute to the variation in the RCS; however, it is occasionally difficult to predict. We then used a one-dimensional Gaussian random rough surface to generate a RAM C-II with a microrough surface through a point-coordinate transformation and simulated its flow field. The electron density flow field of the rough surfaced aircraft fluctuates greatly on the wall. Finally, we calculated the RCS of RAM C-II with different values of roughness in the millimeter wave band. The change of surface structure can be reflected in millimeter waves, and the RCS is determined by both plasma and rough structure. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The interaction mechanism between plasmas and electromagnetic waves has not been fully defined, and experiments are helpful for investigating the mechanism and verifying the theoretical analysis. This paper proposes a point-focusing lens antenna based on three-dimensional (3D) printing technology for the experimental study of the interaction between electromagnetic waves and a small-area plasma. First, CST simulation software was used for the simulation design of the horn antenna and focusing lens. Subsequently, 3D printing technology was used to print the lens combined with the horn antenna for experimental verification of the focusing performance. Finally, an electromagnetic wave passing through a plasma was experimentally investigated, and it was mutually verified with the propagation theory of electromagnetic waves in plasmas. The experimental and theoretical data indicated that the 3D-printed point-focusing lens antenna exhibited a good focusing effect on electromagnetic waves. This method may be used by employing a variety of materials and designs, thereby considerably improving the detection of small-area plasma. It may also solve the issue of the radial diffraction effect of narrow cylindrical plasma generated by inductively coupled plasma-generation equipment and reduce the error associated with experimental data. Therefore, this method may be useful for plasma propagation measurement, plasma-environment diffraction analysis, and parameter inversion of complex plasma environments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Plasma shock waves represent high-speed, nonlinear motion states of plasma in which the physical parameters of fluid, such as density, temperature, and velocity, vary dramatically within a limited space. These variations make studying electromagnetic wave propagation in plasma shock waves difficult. In this study, we calculate the spatial distribution of the plasma frequency and collision frequency in the plasma shock layer based on the one-dimensional structure of the plasma shock wave. In the process from upstream to downstream of the plasma shock wave, the plasma frequency increases as a function of electron density; downstream, the plasma frequency increases as a function of the free stream Mach number, while the collision frequency decreases first and then increases. We also use the recursive convolution finite-difference time-domain method to calculate the propagation of the electromagnetic wave in the plasma shock layer. The absorption of the plasma shock layer to the electromagnetic wave decreases gradually as a function of the electromagnetic wave frequency. The absorption of the plasma shock layer downstream of the electromagnetic wave is greater than that upstream owing to the larger plasma frequency. In the case of low-Mach numbers, the wavelength of the electromagnetic wave downstream is larger than that upstream. In the case of high-Mach numbers, the thickness of the entire shock layer is much greater than that at low-Mach numbers. Due to the nonlinear effects of electromagnetic processes in plasmas, a modulation phenomenon occurs when electromagnetic waves propagate in the shock layer. In the case of low frequencies, the electromagnetic wave gave rise to a modulation phenomenon that resembled the beat phenomenon. When the electromagnetic wave frequency increased, a modulation phenomenon gradually appeared that resembled the oscillation superimposed on a sine wave. Further increases in the electromagnetic wave frequency led to the gradual disappearance of the modulation phenomenon. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Electron density is one of the most important parameters for characterizing plasma properties, so obtaining accurate electron density is a prerequisite for studying the interaction between plasma and the electromagnetic waves. This paper presents the effects of different electron densities on the electric field distribution of a microstrip antenna with a center frequency of 2.45 GHz. Then, on the basis of the integrated model of plasma and the microstrip antenna, the Bayesian regularization neural network (BRNN) is used to retrieve the electron density of inhomogeneous plasma. Furthermore, the performance of the proposed approach is evaluated and analyzed by comparison with Levenberg–Marquardt (LM) and Scaled Conjugate Gradient (SCG) neural networks. The results show that the BRNN provides better performance than LM and SCG neural networks to retrieve plasma electron density based on the electric field intensity at fewer spatial positions. The accurate distribution of the electron density of inhomogeneous plasma can be obtained using BRNN. In addition, the greater the range variation of electron density, the greater the relative inversion error. This study provides an important theoretical basis for the diagnosis of electron density for inhomogeneous plasma in experiments. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]