Study on the Characteristics of Composite Electromagnetic Scattering from Actual Terrain Surfaces with Multiple Targets

To address the need for radar echo data collection and feature extraction of targets in real-world environments, this study utilizes the four-component model proposed by Wang and Schmugge to simulate the dielectric constant of soil and applies the Digital Elevation Model (DEM) to represent the undulations of actual terrain surfaces. Employing the Finite-Difference Time-Domain (FDTD) method, we investigate the composite electromagnetic scattering characteristics of actual terrain with multiple targets, and derive the angular distribution curves of the composite scattering coefficient. The results indicate that the composite scattering coefficient oscillates with the scattering angle, exhibiting scattering enhancement in the specular reflection direction. It decreases with an increasing incident angle and increases with higher incident wave frequencies, greater soil moisture content, a larger number of targets. This study offers significant theoretical and practical insights into understanding the electromagnetic scattering behavior of targets in complex terrains and optimizing electromagnetic wave detection systems, particularly for target detection and identification in dynamic environments.