AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY

SMARAD Centre of Excellence

Plane wave diffraction by an ideally

conducting sphere
Expansion of the fields into spherical harmonics

Pekka Ikonen
pikonen@cc.hut.fi

Radio Laboratory / SMARAD

Helsinki University of Technology

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AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SMARAD Centre of Excellence

References
1. R.F. Harrington, Time-Harmonic Electromagnetic Fields, John Wiley &
Sons, 2001 (reissue).

2. I. Lindell, K. Nikoskinen, lecture notes (in Finnish) for S-96.131

“Sähkömagnetiikka”, (available at the Electromagnetics laboratory,
TKK)

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Contents
• Solution for scalar Helmholtz equation in spherical coordinates

• Expanding a plane wave into spherical harmonics

• Formulating the diffraction problem

• RCS of a metal sphere

• Limiting cases for RCS

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AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SMARAD Centre of Excellence

Scalar Helmholtz equation

(1) ∇2 ψ + k 2 ψ = 0

In spherical coordinate system

∂2ψ
   
1 ∂ 2 ∂ψ 1 ∂ ∂ψ 1 2
(2) 2 r + 2 sin θ + 2 2 2
+ k ψ=0
r ∂r ∂r r sin θ ∂θ ∂θ r sin θ ∂φ

The general solution can be written using the separation of variables

XX
(3) ψ= Cm,n bn (kr)Lm
n (cos θ)h(mφ)
m n

ψm,n are called elementary wave functions formed by a product of

eigenfunctions of spherical coordinate system

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Eigenfunctions
bn (kr) are spherical Bessel functions
r
π
(4) bn (kr) = Bn+1/2 (kr)
2kr

Lm
n (cos θ) denotes the associated Legendre function

(5) Lm
n (cos θ) ∼ P m
n (cos θ), Qm
n (cos θ)

h(mφ) is the familiar exponential function

(6) h(mφ) = ejmφ

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Expansion into spherical harmonics 1/4

r
Z

a Y

X Incident plane wave

Let us choose the plane wave to travel into z-direction

(7) e−jkz = e−jkr cos θ

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AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SMARAD Centre of Excellence

Expansion into spherical harmonics 2/4

The carrying idea: Sources are bounded to a finite region
⇒ fields outside the sources represented as series of eigenfunctions
Physical insight: The plane wave has to be independent of φ, and finite
at the origin
∞
X
(8) e−jkz = e−jkr cos θ = an jn (kr)Pn (cos θ)
n=0

Next step: Utilize the orthogonality of Legendre polynomials

Z π
(9) Pn (cos θ)Pq (cos θ) sin θdθ = 0 n 6= q
0
π
2
Z
2
(10) [Pn (cos θ)] sin θdθ = n=q
0 2n + 1
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Expansion into spherical harmonics 3/4

Equation for the unknown coefficients
Z π
2
(11) e−jkr cos θ Pn (cos θ) sin θdθ = an jn (kr)
0 2n + 1

The nth derivative of left-hand side with respect to r (evaluated at

r = 0)
Z π
−n n j −n 2n+1 (n!)2
j cos θPn (cos θ) sin θdθ =
0 (2n + 1)!

The same for the right hand side produces

2n+1 (n!)2
an
(2n + 1)(2n + 1)!

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Expansion into spherical harmonics 4/4

⇒ A plane wave expanded into spherical harmonics
∞
X
(12) e−jkz = e−jkr cos θ = j −n (2n + 1)jn (kr)Pn (cos θ)
n=0

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SMARAD Centre of Excellence

The concept of Debye potentials

TM 1 TE 1
(13) H = ∇ × ur A(r), E = ∇ × ur F (r)
µ ǫ
Radial components of vector potentials do not satisfy Helmholtz
equation. Need to define Debye potentials:
(14) Ad (r) = ur rA(r), Fd (r) = ur rF (r)
Connection to polarization
(15) Ad ↔ TEr , Fd ↔ TMr
1 1
(16) E = ∇ × rF (r) + ∇ × (∇ × rA(r))
ǫ jωµǫ
1 1
(17) H = ∇ × rA(r) − ∇ × (∇ × rF (r))
µ jωµǫ

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Scattering from the sphere

Let the incident field be
(18) Ei (r) = ux E0 e−jkz

(19) Hi (r) = uy H0 e−jkz

Dividing the wave into TEr and TMr parts

Eri = (ux · ur )E0 e−jkz = E0 sin θ cos φe−jkr cos θ

1 ∂
(20) = E0 cos φ e−jkr cos θ
jkr ∂θ
Hri = (ux · ur )H0 e−jkz = H0 sin θ sin φe−jkr cos θ
1 ∂ −jkr cos θ
(21) = H0 sin φ e
jkr ∂θ

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Series representation
∞
X −j n ∂
(22) Eri = E0 (2n + 1)jn (kr) Pn (cos θ) cos φ
n=0
jkr ∂θ
∞ n
i
X −j ∂
(23) Hr = H0 (2n + 1)jn (kr) Pn (cos θ) sin φ
n=0
jkr ∂θ
The following holds
d d
(24) Pn (cos θ) = − sin θ[ Pn (x)]x=cos θ = Pn1 (cos θ)
dθ dx
∞
X (−j)n
(25) Eri = E0 (2n + 1)jn (kr)Pn1 (cos θ) cos φ
n=1
jkr
∞
X (−j)n
(26) Hri = H0 (2n + 1)jn (kr)Pn1 (cos θ) sin φ
n=1
jkr
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Fields using vector potentials

∞
X (−j)n (2n + 1)
(27) Air = E0 krjn (kr)Pn1 (cos θ) cos φ
n=1
ω n(n + 1)
∞ n
i
X(−j) (2n + 1)
(28) Fr = − H0 krjn (kr)Pn1 (cos θ) sin φ
n=1
ω n(n + 1)
The scattering potential is easy to solve ⇒ Every spherical component
creates a similar component in the scattered field
∞
X (−j)n
(29) Asr = E0 bn krh(2)
n (kr)P 1
n (cos θ) cos φ
n=1
ω
∞ n
X(−j)
(30) Fri = − H0 cn krh(2) 1
n (kr)Pn (cos θ) sin φ
n=1
ω

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The distant backscattered field 1/2

−jk0 r
n+1 e
(31) h(2)
n (k0 r) →j , k0 r → ∞
k0 r

In a backscattering scenario θ → π and the following holds

1 1′ n n(n + 1)
(32) Pn1 (cos θ), sin θPn (cos θ) −→ (−1)
sin θ 2

We can write for the field components (Ers (r, θ, φ) → 0)

−jk0 r ∞
s e X
n n(n + 1)
(33) Eθ (r, π, φ) → −E0 cos φ (−j) (bn − cn )
jk0 r n=1
2

−jk0 r ∞
e X n(n + 1)
(34) Eφs (r, π, φ) → −E0 sin φ (−j)n (bn − cn )
jk0 r n=1
2
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Radar cross section

Es = ux (cos θ cos φEθ − sin φEφ ) + uy (cos θ sin φEθ + cos φEφ )
∞
−jk0 r X
s e (−j)n
(35) = ux Ex = ux (−j)E0 n(n + 1)(bn − cn )
k0 r n=1 2
Formal definition for the radar cross section
s 2
|E |
(36) σr = lim (4πr2 i )
r→∞ |E |2
Leads to  ∞ 2
2
πa   X
n

(37) σr = 2
(−j) n(n + 1)(bn − cn )
(k0 a) 
n=1

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RCS: Ideally conducting sphere

Boundary conditions
∂
(38) Fri + Frs = 0, (Air + Asr ) = 0
∂r

[xjn (x)]′x=k0 a
(39) bn = −an (2)
[xhn (x)]′x=k0 a
jn (k0 a)
(40) cn = −an (2)
hn (k0 a)
2n + 1
(41) an = (−j)n
n(n + 1)
 ∞
2 n
2
πa  X (−1) (2n + 1) 
(42) σr =
(k0 a)2  n=1 [xh
(2)
n (x)][xh
(2)
n (x)]′
x=k0 a

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Normalized RCS as a function of F

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Small conducting sphere (k0a small)

Manipulating (42): Term corresponding to n = 1 strongly dominant

x → 0, xh1 (x) → j/x

These approximations lead to

(43) σr → πa2 9(k0 a)4 , k0 a → 0

Good approximation when a < λ/10

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AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SMARAD Centre of Excellence

Large conducting sphere (comp. λ)

Asymptotic formula for large argument

 
n(n + 1) (n − 1)n(n + 1)(n + 2)
xh(2)
n (x) → j n+1 −jx
e 1−j − 2
+ ...
2x 8x

Inserting the above formula into (42) leads (should lead) to

(44) σr → πa2

Seems to be very tricky to prove...

Correct result can be achieved more easily e.g. using geometrical
optics

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AB HELSINKI UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
SMARAD Centre of Excellence

Homework
Consider a metal sphere floating in the air. You want to represent a
finite field outside the sphere using eigenfunctions of spherical
coordinate system.

1. Explain the choice of proper eigenfunctions in the general

representation (of elementary wave functions).

(Hints: Think about possible singularities of eigenfunctions, check that

your solution obeys proper behavior at infinity...)

Plane wave diffraction by an ideally conducting sphere 20