A Spectral Approach to Nondestructive Testing via Electromagnetic Waves

In recent years, a new approach has been proposed in the study of the inverse scattering problem for electromagnetic waves. In particular, a study is made of the analytic properties of the scattering operator, and the results of this study are used to design target signatures that respond to changes in the electromagnetic parameters of the scattering medium. These target signatures are characterized by novel eigenvalue problems such that the eigenvalues can be determined from measured scattering data. Changes in the structural properties of the material or the presence of flaws cause changes in the measured eigenvalues. In this article, we provide a general framework for developing target signatures and numerical evidence of the efficacy of new target signatures based on recently introduced eigenvalue problems arising in electromagnetic scattering theory for anisotropic media.