Dispersion and attenuation of guided waves in the Arctic Ocean with viscoelastic ice layer

The dispersion and attenuation characteristics of Arctic Ocean guided waves have significant applications in the analysis of under-ice acoustic fields and the inversion of acoustic parameters of ice, water, sediment, and seafloor. However, determining the complex dispersion relationship of guided waves propagating in a damped medium presents significant challenges. In this study, the Arctic Ocean was modeled as a viscoelastic ice-water-sediment-seafloor coupled system. Moreover, a spectral method was introduced to investigate the dispersion and attenuation of Arctic guided waves. The wave equations and boundary conditions were discretized, resulting in a generalized eigenvalue problem for guided waves propagating in this viscoelastic coupled system. A numerical program was then constructed to calculate the dispersion and attenuation curves of the guided waves. Furthermore, the influence of ice thickness, damping properties, and seawater depth on dispersion and attenuation was analyzed. The results obtained in this study provide theoretical guidance for Arctic Ocean acoustic detection, navigation, and trans-ice acoustic communication.