Study on Sound Field Properties of Parametric Array Under the Influence of Underwater Waveguide Interface Scattering Based on Non-Paraxial Model—Theory and Experiment

This paper theoretically and experimentally studies the effect of underwater waveguide interface scattering on the nonlinear sound field characteristics of parametric array (PA) radiation. Based on the image source method, the components of the sound field in the waveguide are first analyzed. Then, a non-paraxial model is developed to account for the influence of interface scattering. This model enables accurate calculation of the wide-angle sound field. The impact of the sound source depth and the interface reflection coefficient on the distribution of the difference-frequency wave (DFW) sound field in the waveguide is studied. The interface alters the phase distribution of the DFW’s virtual source density function, thereby affecting the sound field accumulation process. Waveguide interfaces with different absorption coefficients influence the amplitude oscillation caused by interface reflection and change the sidelobe size of the DFW beam. The DFW sound field distribution is measured at three typical frequencies. Simulation and experimental results show that the attenuation of the DFW’s axial sound pressure level in the waveguide oscillates, and the DFW’s beamwidth gradually widens as the frequency decreases. The calculated results from the proposed model agree well with the measured data, with average errors along the sound axis and depth being less than 3 dB and 6 dB, respectively. This demonstrates the model’s superior applicability compared to the existing free-field model.