Investigation of microwave power transfer near sea surface with 2D parabolic equation method

Abstract Due to the existence of the evaporation duct near‐sea‐surface described as an inhomogeneous refractive index of atmosphere, microwaves can be trapped in the duct and propagate along it. To investigate wireless power transfer (WPT) over the sea surface, we utilize the two‐dimensional parabolic equation to calculate the electric field distribution and to obtain the transferred power. By analysing the propagation results with specific evaluation functions, we obtained the proper conditions for long‐distance WPT over the sea surface. When the initial field distributes uniformly on the one‐meter aperture, the frequency is 12 GHz, and the centre position is 4 m, a unique focusing spot can be obtained in the duct and nearly 5%, 8%, and 12% of the initial power remains at a distance of 10 km with a receiving aperture of 1, 2, and 3 m, respectively. The presented WPT scheme near the sea surface has potential applications in the power supply or charging for ships or small islands.