Abstract

The scattering of a coherent plane wave from a dielectric hollow circular cylinder is considered. The scattering pattern in the far field is determined by deriving a rigorous solution for the wave equation. Approximate solutions are also derived using geometric optics and Fourier optics methods. The approximate solutions are compared with the exact solution of the wave equation. Experimental results are compared to the theory and agreement is shown. Both polarizations of the far field are considered. The fringe spacings of the scattered field are analyzed as a function of the scattering angle, wavelength, polarization, and diameter of the cylinder.

© 1989 Optical Society of America