Study of absorption and scattering of terahertz wave in inhomogeneous dusty plasma sheath

Abstract

The dusty plasma sheath formed during the reentry process of hypersonic vehicle will block the propagation of electromagnetic wave, causing problem in detection. Terahertz detection is a potential solution to this problem. When terahertz wave propagate through the dusty plasma sheath, both resonance absorption and scattering would lead to attenuation of terahertz wave. In this work, the propagation characteristics of terahertz wave in dusty plasma have been studied combining scattering matrix method and Mie scattering theory. The results will help to find the optimum detection frequency for reentry vehicle.