Sound-wave coherence in atmospheric turbulence with intrinsic and global intermittency

The coherence function of sound waves propagating through an intermittently turbulent atmosphere is calculated theoretically. Intermittency mechanisms due to both the turbulent energy cascade (intrinsic intermittency) and spatially uneven production (global intermittency) are modeled using ensembles of quasiwavelets (QWs), which are analogous to turbulent eddies. The intrinsic intermittency is associated with decreasing spatial density (packing fraction) of the QWs with decreasing size. Global intermittency is introduced by allowing the local strength of the turbulence, as manifested by the amplitudes of the QWs, to vary in space according to superimposed Markov processes. The resulting turbulence spectrum is then used to evaluate the coherence function of a plane sound wave undergoing line-of-sight propagation. Predictions are made by a general simulation method and by an analytical derivation valid in the limit of Gaussian fluctuations in signal phase. It is shown that the average coherence function increases as a result of both intrinsic and global intermittency. When global intermittency is very strong, signal phase fluctuations become highly non-Gaussian and the average coherence is dominated by episodes with weak turbulence.     

Coherence function and mean field of plane and spherical sound waves propagating through inhomogeneous anisotropic turbulence

Inhomogeneity and anisotropy are intrinsic characteristics of daytime and nighttime atmospheric turbulence. For example, turbulent eddies are often stretched in the direction of the mean wind, and the turbulence statistics depends on the height above the ground. Recent studies have shown that the log-amplitude and phase fluctuations of plane and spherical sound waves are significantly affected by turbulence inhomogeneity and anisotropy. The present paper is devoted to studies of the mean sound field and the coherence functions of plane and spherical sound waves propagating through inhomogeneous anisotropic turbulence with temperature and velocity fluctuations. These statistical moments of a sound field are important in many practical applications, e.g., for source detection, ranging, and recognition. Formulas are derived for the mean sound field and coherence function of initially arbitrary waveform. Using the latter formula, we also obtained formulas for the coherence functions of plane and spherical sound waves. All these formulas coincide with those known in the literature for two limiting cases: homogeneous isotropic turbulence with temperature and wind velocity fluctuations, and inhomogeneous anisotropic turbulence with temperature fluctuations only. Using the formulas obtained, we have numerically shown that turbulence inhomogeneity significantly affects the coherence functions of plane and spherical sound waves.     

An extended parabolic equation and its application to the calculation of transverse and longitudinal mutual coherence functions in atmospheric turbulence

An extended, wide forward angle scattering version of the parabolic equation is considered and an operator expression for the solution of the generalized nmth moment of the electromagnetic wave field is obtained. Here, 'generalized' connotes the consideration of both the transverse as well as the longitudinal spatial moments of the wave field. A unified solution for the generalized second-order moment, i.e. the mutual coherence function (MCF), is found. The solution is applied to the case of Kolmogorov turbulent fluctuations within the atmosphere. In addition to demonstrating an interesting decaying oscillatory behaviour of the longitudinal MCF in atmospheric turbulence, it is found that the use of the extended parabolic equation yields negligible corrections to the transverse MCF, as calculated from the parabolic equation in the paraxial approximation.     

Slant path average intensity of finite optical beam propagating in turbulent atmosphere

The average intensity of finite laser beam propagating through turbulent atmosphere is calculated from the extended Huygens Fresnel principle. Formulas are presented for the slant path average intensity from an arbitrarily truncated Gaussian beam. The new expressions are derived from the modified von Karman spectrum for refractive-index fluctuations, quadratic approximation of the structure function,and Gaussian approximation for the product of Gaussian function and Bessel function. It is shown that the form of average intensity is not a Gaussian function but a polynomial of the power of the binomial function, Gaussian function, and the incomplete gamma function. The results also show that the mean irradiance of a finite optical beam propagating in slant path turbulent atmosphere not only depends on the effective beam radius at the transmitting aperture plane, propagation distance, and long-term lateral coherence length of spherical wave, but also on the radius of emit aperture.     

The mean-field method in the problem of acoustic wave propagation in a turbulent atmosphere

We analyze the problem of acoustic-wave propagation in a turbulent atmosphere using the mean-field method. The equation for the sound pressure is written with accuracy up to terms that are linear with respect to the Mach number of the turbulent air flow. An expression for the attenuation constant of the mean field is obtained. For the turbulence model described by the von Kármán correlation function of fluctuations, the attenuation coefficient of the mean field is numerically studied in detail. It is shown that under typical conditions of the near-ground atmospheric layer, the predominant contribution to scattering of acoustic waves is given by the turbulent motion of the air masses. __________ Translated from Izvestiya Vysshikh Uchebnykh Zavedenii, Radiofizika, Vol. 51, No. 5, pp. 413–424, May 2008.     

Statistical theory of the propagation of optical radiation in turbulent media

The problem of the propagation of a plane light wave in a turbulent medium is studied on the basis of the ideas of statistical topography. A cluster (caustic) structure of the intensity of the wave field in a plane perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the wave is analyzed both in the region of weak intensity fluctuations and in the region of saturated fluctuations. The specific (per unit area) values of the total area of the regions where the intensity is greater than a fixed level, the fraction of the power confined in these regions, and the total perimeter and average number of such regions are estimated. It is shown that estimates of this kind can be made on the basis of a knowledge of the joint one-point probability distribution of the intensity and transverse gradient of the wave field. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 111, 2044–2058 (June 1997)     

Spatial coherence measurements from two L-shape arrays in Shallow Water

In the Shallow Water’ 06 experiment, two L-shape arrays (ARRAY52 and ARRAY32) were deployed. The vertical line array (VLA) components of both ARRAY52 and ARRAY32 were exactly perpendicular to the direction of sound propagation. The horizontal line array (HLA) component of ARRAY52 was exactly perpendicular to the direction of sound propagation. The HLA component of ARRAY32 was exactly parallel to the direction of sound propagation. This configuration offered an opportunity to simultaneously analyze the three dimensional (3-D) spatial coherences: vertical, transverse horizontal and longitudinal horizontal. When the source and the receivers were below the thermocline, both the vertical and longitudinal horizontal coherence lengths in units of wavelength increased with increasing range and frequency. When the source was within the thermocline, the transverse horizontal coherence length in units of wavelength decreased with frequency and exhibited weak range dependence. The text was submitted by the authors in English.     

Propagation of phase-locked partially coherent flattened beam array in turbulent atmosphere

Analytical formulae for phase-locked partially coherent flattened beam array propagating in a turbulent atmosphere are derived based on the extended Huygens–Fresnel principle. Beam propagation factor (BPF) is introduced to evaluate the beam quality at the receiving plane. The influence of beam order, transverse coherence width length and the intensity of turbulence is discussed in detail.     

Reconstruction of the wind velocity profile from the intensity fluctuations of a reflected spherical wave in the turbulent atmosphere

The problem of reconstructing the wind velocity profile from the spatiotemporal statistics of turbulent reflected optical radiation intensity fluctuations is considered in the article. Expressions for the spatiotemporal correlation function and the spectrum of weak intensity fluctuations of the wave scattered on a diffusive screen are derived. An algorithm for reconstructing the wind velocity profile from the spatiotemporal spectra of the intensity of a reflected spherical wave in the turbulent atmosphere is suggested. The results of closed numerical experiments are presented that confirm the efficiency of the suggested algorithm.     

Sound and light propagation in a weakly inhomogeneous atmosphere

Small-scale inhomogeneities caused by atmospheric turbulence have a considerable effect on sound and light propagation, producing the fluctuations of these wave fields. V A Krasilnikov [1, 2] performed experiments on phase and amplitude variations of a sound wave propagating through the atmosphere. Fluctuations of light-wave parameters occur, for example, in the well known phenomenon of star scintillation, apparently strongly connected with turbulent irregularities of the atmospheric temperature field [3, 4]‡.

Some calculations of phase (arrival angle) and amplitude fluctuations for a wave propagating through a turbulent medium are described by Krasilnikov [1, 3, 8]. All these and similar calculations are based on the geometrical optics (acoustics) approximation, which may be the reason for disagreement between calculation and experimental data in some cases. Thus, for example, amplitude fluctuations in the geometrical approximation turn out to be proportional to the distance of propagation through a turbulent medium to the power of 3/2. However, observations usually show much slower fluctuation growth.

This paper represents an attempt to consider the problem of amplitude and phase variations for a scalar wave field in terms of more general equations including some diffraction effects. Incidentally, the range of validity of geometrical optics theory becomes clear.     

大气湍流对斜程传输准单色高斯-谢尔光束时间相干性的影响

由第一类零阶贝塞尔函数的级数展开推导出波结构函数在任意湍流条件下的近似表达式。由广义惠更斯-菲涅耳原理、随高度变化的Hufnagel-Valley湍流廓线模型以及波结构函数在任意湍流条件下的近似表达式,导出了斜程传输时准单色高斯-谢尔光束互相干函数的解析式。然后,利用表征光束时间相干性的纵向相干长度(可由互相干函数导出),研究了斜程传输时大气湍流对准单色高斯-谢尔光束时间相干性的影响。研究结果表明,准单色高斯-谢尔光束的时间相干性在整个斜程传输过程中保持不变。最后,对该结果在物理上给予了定性解释。     

Propagation aspects of Mathieu–Gaussian beams in turbulence

Based on our recent source plane formulation, the propagation characteristics of Mathieu–Gaussian beams in turbulent atmosphere are investigated. In this connection, the average receiver plane intensity expression is deduced using the Huygens–Fresnel integral. Our results offered in the form of graphical illustrations reveal that, for some settings of source and propagation parameters, the center of the source beam is evacuated after propagation, while the initially smaller side lobes begin to grow. In a parallel development, the angular distribution of the beam also changes. At small Gaussian source sizes and transverse components of the wave vector, the source beam profile remains almost invariant throughout the propagation. The larger refractive index structure constant values cause the final Gaussian beam profile to be attained at earlier propagation distances. Smaller refractive index structure constants, on the other hand, do not change the beam profile substantially from that of free space.     

Markovian non-Gaussian approximation for light propagation in a random medium

A theory is presented for wave propagation in a random medium that generalizes the Markovian-Gaussian approximation to the case of a non-Gaussian probability distribution of refractivity fluctuations. A Poissonian model of refractivity fluctuations that are statistically independent in non-overlapping intervals in the x-direction is used. This model turns out to be Gaussian under appropriate conditions. General solutions are obtained for the mean field and the mutual coherence function of a plane, partially coherent incident wave. These solutions contain a new functional parameter, a characteristic function of the amplitude of dielectric permittivity fluctuations, that affects the shape of the coherence function as well as its spectrum.     

Propagation factors of Hermite–Gaussian beams in turbulent atmosphere

Based on the extended Huygens–Fresnel integral and the second-order moments of the Wigner distribution function, an analytical formulae for the propagation factors (M²-factors) of coherent and partially coherent one-dimensional Hermite–Gaussian beams in a turbulent atmosphere are derived. Evolution properties of the M²-factor of the Hermite–Gaussian beam in a turbulent atmosphere are studied numerically in detail. Our results show that the M²-factor of the Hermite–Gaussian beam increases upon propagation in a turbulent atmosphere. The M²-factor of the Hermite–Gaussian beam with larger beam order (or lower coherence) increases slower that of the Hermite–Gaussian beam with smaller beam order (or higher coherence) in a turbulent atmosphere, which means that the Hermite–Gaussian beam with a larger beam order and lower coherence is less affected by a turbulent atmosphere. Our results will be useful in long-distance free-space optical communications.     

Detection of a semirough target in turbulent atmosphere by a partially coherent beam

The inverse problem of the interaction of an isotropic Gaussian Schell-model beam with a semirough target in turbulent atmosphere is investigated. It is found that we can determine the target size and the transverse correlation width of the target by measuring the transverse beam widths and the transverse coherence widths of the beams at the source plane and the receiver plane. Our results are useful for remote sensing and bistatic LIDAR system.     

Acoustic propagation through anisotropic internal wave fields: transmission loss, cross-range coherence, and horizontal refraction

Results of a computer simulation study are presented for acoustic propagation in a shallow water, anisotropic ocean environment. The water column is characterized by random volume fluctuations in the sound speed field that are induced by internal gravity waves, and this variability is superimposed on a dominant summer thermocline. Both the internal wave field and resulting sound speed perturbations are represented in three-dimensional (3D) space and evolve in time. The isopycnal displacements consist of two components: a spatially diffuse, horizontally isotropic component and a spatially localized contribution from an undular bore (i.e., a solitary wave packet or solibore) that exhibits horizontal (azimuthal) anisotropy. An acoustic field is propagated through this waveguide using a 3D parabolic equation code based on differential operators representing wide-angle coverage in elevation and narrow-angle coverage in azimuth. Transmission loss is evaluated both for fixed time snapshots of the environment and as a function of time over an ordered set of snapshots which represent the time-evolving sound speed distribution. Horizontal acoustic coherence, also known as transverse or cross-range coherence, is estimated for horizontally separated points in the direction normal to the source-receiver orientation. Both transmission loss and spatial coherence are computed at acoustic frequencies 200 and 400 Hz for ranges extending to 10 km, a cross-range of 1 km, and a water depth of 68 m. Azimuthal filtering of the propagated field occurs for this environment, with the strongest variations appearing when propagation is parallel to the solitary wave depressions of the thermocline. A large anisotropic degradation in horizontal coherence occurs under the same conditions. Horizontal refraction of the acoustic wave front is responsible for the degradation, as demonstrated by an energy gradient analysis of in-plane and out-of-plane energy transfer. The solitary wave packet is interpreted as a nonstationary oceanographic waveguide within the water column, preferentially funneling acoustic energy between the thermocline depressions.     

Changes in the coherence of quasi-monochromatic electromagnetic Gaussian Schell-model beams propagating through turbulent atmosphere

Based on the extended Huygens-Fresnel principle, the mutual coherence function of quasi-monochromatic electromagnetic Gaussian Schell-model (EGSM) beams propagating through turbulent atmosphere is derived analytically. By employing the lateral and the longitudinal coherence length of EGSM beams to characterize the spatial and the temporal coherence of the beams, the behavior of changes in the spatial and the temporal coherence of those beams is studied. The results show that with a fixed set of beam parameters and under particular atmospheric turbulence model, the lateral coherence of an EGSM beam reaches its maximum value as the beam propagates a certain distance in the turbulent atmosphere, then it begins degrading and keeps decreasing along with the further distance. However, the longitudinal coherence length of an EGSM beam keeps unchanging in this propagation. Lastly, a qualitative explanation is given to these results.     

大气湍流对斜程传输准单色高斯-谢尔光束空间相干性的影响

由湍流大气中斜程传输时准单色高斯-谢尔(GSM)光束互相干函数的解析式导出了该光束的复相干度.然后,利用表征光束空间相干性的横向相干长度,研究了斜程传输时大气湍流对准单色GSM光束空间相干性的影响.研究结果表明：1)当传输路径偏离水平方向较大(即θ≤88°)时,准单色GSM光束横向相干长度随传输距离均为先迅速增加,后缓慢增加,最后基本保持不变.2)当传输路径接近水平方向(即θ≥89°)时,准单色GSM光束横向相干长度随传输距离均为先增大,达到一个最大值后开始下降并持续减小.3) 关键词： 大气光学 空间相干性 高斯-谢尔光束 斜程传输     

Propagation of partially coherent Bessel-Gaussian beams in turbulent atmosphere

The characteristics of partially coherent Bessel-Gaussian beams propagating in turbulent atmosphere are investigated. Based on the extended Huygens–Fresnel principle, the influence of topological charges and coherence of the source on the intensity and the degree of coherence in the received plane are considered. The influence of atmospheric turbulence on beam profile and coherence in the received plane is also analyzed. It is found that a Bessel-Gaussian shaped intensity distribution will eventually transform into a Gaussian distribution after propagating in turbulent atmosphere. Meanwhile, topological charges, coherence of the source and atmospheric turbulence will also influence the propagation characterizations of the beams.