Electromagnetic Scattering Characteristics of Blunt Cone Aircraft Under THz Waves Based on PO Method

The physical optics (PO) method based on subregional triangular patch division was used to study the electromagnetic (EM) scattering characteristics of a blunt cone hypersonic vehicle under terahertz (THz) waves in different environments. First, the backscattering radar cross section (RCS) of a metal blunt cone under gigahertz and THz waves was calculated separately; the results show that the RCS under the THz wave has higher accuracy and can better reflect the structural characteristics of the target. Then, the RCS of a blunt cone covered with a plasma sheath at different reentry heights was calculated; the results show that the existence of the plasma sheath will reduce the target RCS, and the degree of reduction is related to the maximum electron density, the frequency of incident waves, and other factors, but THz waves can alleviate this effect. Finally, the RCS of a blunt cone covered with a plasma sheath and radar absorbing material (RAM) at different incident EM wave frequencies were also studied, and some interesting conclusions are preliminarily obtained. Our work can provide a meaningful reference for advancing research on the stealth and anti-stealth capabilities of hypersonic vehicles.