The Spectral Theory of Transients (STT): A Unified Formulation with Illustrative Examples

The Spectral Theory of Transients (STT) [1, 2] is a mathematical strategy for constructing exact closed-form solutions for short-pulse propagation and scattering in rather general configurations involving, for example, short-pulse propagation in inhomogeneous media, caustics, edge and head-wave diffractions, etc. It is the time-domain counterpart of the conventional complex-spectrum representation of time-harmonic wave fields.