Wideband radar cross-section reduction by a double-layer-plasma-based metasurface

Reduction of the radar cross-section(RCS) is the key to stealth technology. To improve the RCS reduction effect of the designed checkerboard metasurface and overcome the limitation of thinlayer plasma in RCS reduction technology, a double-layer-plasma-based metasurface—composed of a checkerboard metasurface, a double-layer plasma and an air gap between them—was investigated. Based on the principle of backscattering cancellation, we designed a checkerboard metasurface composed of different artificial magnetic conductor units;the checkerboard metasurface can reflect vertically incident electromagnetic(EM) waves in four different inclined directions to reduce the RCS. Full-wave simulations confirm that the doublelayer-plasma-based metasurface can improve the RCS reduction effect of the metasurface and the plasma. This is because in a band lower than the working band of the metasurface, the RCS reduction effect is mainly improved by the plasma layer. In the working band of the metasurface,impedance mismatching between the air gap and first plasma layer and between first and second plasma layers cause the scattered waves to become more dispersed, so the propagation path of the EM waves in the plasma becomes longer, increasing the absorption of the EM waves by the plasma. Thus, the RCS reduction effect is enhanced. The double-layer-plasma-based metasurface can be insensitive to the polarization of the incoming EM waves, and can also maintain a satisfactory RCS reduction band when the incident waves are oblique.

Theoretical analysis of the double-differential cross-sections of neutron,proton,deuteron,^(3)He,andαfor the p+^(6) Li reaction

Based on the unified Hauser–Feshbach and exciton model,which can describe the particle emission processes between discrete energy levels with energy,angular momentum,and parity conservations,a statistical theory of light nucleus reaction(STLN)is developed to calculate the double-differential cross-sections of the outgoing neutron and light charged particles for the proton-induced^(6) Li reaction.A significant difference is observed between the p+^(6) Li and p+^(7) Li reactions owing to the discrepancies in the energy-level structures of the targets.The reaction channels,including sequential and simultaneous emission processes,are analyzed in detail.Taking the double-differential cross-sections of the outgoing proton as an example,the influence of contaminations(such as^(1) H,^(7)Li,^(12)C,and^(16)O)on the target is identified in terms of the kinetic energy of the first emitted particles.The optical potential parameters of the proton are obtained by fitting the elastic scattering differential cross-sections.The calculated total double-differential cross-sections of the outgoing proton and deuteron at E_(p)=14 MeV agree well with the experimental data for different outgoing angles.Simultaneously,the mixed double differential cross-sections of^(3) He andαare in good agreement with the measurements.The agreement between the measured data and calculated results indicates that the two-body and three-body breakup reactions need to be considered,and the pre-equilibrium reaction mechanism dominates the reaction processes.Based on the STLN model,a PLUNF code for the p+^(6) Li reaction is developed to obtain an ENDF-6-formatted file of the double-differential cross-sections of the nucleon and light composite charged particles.

Ultra-wideband low radar cross-section metasurface and its application on waveguide slot antenna array

A novel approach devoted to achieving ultra-wideband radar cross section reduction（RCSR） of a waveguide slot antenna array（WGSAA） while maintaining its radiation performance is proposed. Three kinds of artificial magnetic conductors（AMCs） tiles consisting of three types of basic units resonant at different frequencies are designed and arranged in a novel quadruple-triangle-type configuration to create a composite planar metasurface. The proposed metasurface is characterized by low radar feature over an ultra-wideband based on the principle of phase cancellation. Both simulated and measured results demonstrate that after the composite metasurface is used to cover part of the antenna array, an ultrawideband RCSR involving in-band and out-of-band is achieved for co-and cross-polarized incident waves based on energy cancellation, while the radiation performance is well retained. The proposed method is simple, low-cost, and easy-tofabricate, providing a new method for ultra-wideband RCSR of an antenna array. Moreover, the method proposed in this paper can easily be applied to other antenna architectures.

Modeling and analysis of piezoelectric beam with periodically variable cross-sections for vibration energy harvesting

A bimorph piezoelectric beam with periodically variable cross-sections is used for the vibration energy harvesting. The effects of two geometrical parameters on the first band gap of this periodic beam are investigated by the generalized differential quadrature rule （GDQR） method. The GDQR method is also used to calculate the forced vibration response of the beam and voltage of each piezoelectric layer when the beam is subject to a sinusoidal base excitation. Results obtained from the analytical method are compared with those obtained from the finite element simulation with ANSYS, and good agreement is found. The voltage output of this periodic beam over its first band gap is calculated and compared with the voltage output of the uniform piezoelectric beam. It is concluded that this periodic beam has three advantages over the uniform piezoelectric beam, i.e., generating more voltage outputs over a wide frequency range, absorbing vibration, and being less weight.

An ultra-wideband 2-bit coding metasurface using Pancharatnam–Berry phase for radar cross-section reduction

An ultra-wideband 2-bit coding metasurface is designed for radar cross-section(RCS) reduction. The design process is presented in detail, in which a polarization conversion metasurface(PCM) is first proposed. The proposed PCM can realize ultra-wideband circular polarization(CP) maintaining reflection. Moreover, Pancharatnam–Berry(PB) phase will be generated in the co-polarized reflection coefficient by rotating the metallic patches in its unit cells. Thus, based on the PCM, the four coding elements of a 2-bit coding metasurface are constructed using PB phase, and an ultra-wideband PB 2-bit coding metasurface is proposed according to an appropriate coding sequence. The simulated and experimental results show that the coding metasurface has obvious advantages of wideband and polarization-insensitivity. Compared to a metallic plate of the same size, it can achieve more than 10 dB RCS reduction in the frequency band from 9.8 GHz to 42.6 GHz with a relative bandwidth of 125.2% under normal incidence with arbitrary polarizations.

Radar Cross-section Imaging of a Rotating Object with a Multi-frequency Holography

A new method called multi-frequency holography (MFH) for two-dimensional radar cross-section imaging of rotating objects is introduced, in which a constant coherent reference signal from transmitted signal is added into received signal over certain frequency-width. With the MFH only the intensity of received composite signals needs to be measured. Both imaging situations of far field and near field are considered in details. Special restrictions about the MFH are also discussed and simulated by numerical computation. Examples of numerical simulation show that the method is effective, applicable and perspective.

RADAR CROSS-SECTION COMPUTATIONS OF ARBITRARILY COMPLICATED TARGETS BY APPLYING THE PANEL METHOD

The present paper deals with the method for the radar cross-section (RCS)computations of arbitrarily complicated targets based on the work by D. Klement et al.(1988).This method is convenient in use, fast in operation and precise in calculating RCS of a complicatedtarget. With this method, the RCS of classic scatterers, for example, a cone and a cylinder, arecomputed with the result of good agreement with experimental data. Furthermore, the RCS’of an aircraft model at various attitudes are calculated with the result of good agreement withexperimental data also.

Radar Cross-Section Measurement Using the Near-Field Single-Frequency Angular-Diversity Technique

Radar cross-section (RCS) measurement with the near-field electromagnetic wave illumination of a target has been proved to be practical. The existing methods employ the multiplefrequency angular-diversity (MFAD) technique, whereas this paper considers the single-frequency angular-diversity (SFAD) technique. The paper takes into account the scattering center modeling and the limitation of higher sidelobes in reconstructing images in the SFAD technique compared to the MFAD technique. A method of combining the SFAD technique with the RELAX approach is presented for the high-resolution extraction of scattering centers on a target. The proposed method offers an excellent RCS recovery, which is validated by numerical results.

K Shell and L Subshell Photoeffect Cross-Sections of Some Elements in the Atomic Range 50≤Z≤65 at 59.5 keV

In this study,K and L shell photoeffect cross-sections were measured for the elements in the range of 50≤Z≤65at 59.5keV.These photoeffect cross-sections were measured by using the experimentalσKαproduction cross-section values measured in this paper and two different K shell fluorescence yield values in the literature.The results were compared with the calculated theoretical values.The values were plotted versus atomic number.

Optimization Design of the Multi-Layer Cross-Sectional Layout of An Umbilical Based on the GA-GLM

Marine umbilical is one of the key equipment for subsea oil and gas exploitation,which is usually integrated by a great number of different functional components with multi-layers.The layout of these components directly affects manufacturing,operation and storage performances of the umbilical.For the multi-layer cross-sectional layout design of the umbilical,a quantifiable multi-objective optimization model is established according to the operation and storage requirements.Considering the manufacturing factors,the multi-layering strategy based on contact point identification is introduced for a great number of functional components.Then,the GA-GLM global optimization algorithm is proposed combining the genetic algorithm and the generalized multiplier method,and the selection operator of the genetic algorithm is improved based on the steepest descent method.Genetic algorithm is used to find the optimal solution in the global space,which can converge from any initial layout to the feasible layout solution.The feasible layout solution is taken as the initial value of the generalized multiplier method for fast and accurate solution.Finally,taking umbilicals with a great number of components as examples,the results show that the cross-sectional performance of the umbilical obtained by optimization algorithm is better and the solution efficiency is higher.Meanwhile,the multi-layering strategy is effective and feasible.The design method proposed in this paper can quickly obtain the optimal multi-layer cross-sectional layout,which replaces the manual design,and provides useful reference and guidance for the umbilical industry.

Methodology for Extraction of Tunnel Cross-Sections Using Dense Point Cloud Data

Tunnel deformation monitoring is a crucial task to evaluate tunnel stability during the metro operation period.Terrestrial Laser Scanning(TLS)can collect high density and high accuracy point cloud data in a few minutes as an innovation technique,which provides promising applications in tunnel deformation monitoring.Here,an efficient method for extracting tunnel cross-sections and convergence analysis using dense TLS point cloud data is proposed.First,the tunnel orientation is determined using principal component analysis(PCA)in the Euclidean plane.Two control points are introduced to detect and remove the unsuitable points by using point cloud division and then the ground points are removed by defining an elevation value width of 0.5 m.Next,a z-score method is introduced to detect and remove the outlies.Because the tunnel cross-section’s standard shape is round,the circle fitting is implemented using the least-squares method.Afterward,the convergence analysis is made at the angles of 0°,30°and 150°.The proposed approach’s feasibility is tested on a TLS point cloud of a Nanjing subway tunnel acquired using a FARO X330 laser scanner.The results indicate that the proposed methodology achieves an overall accuracy of 1.34 mm,which is also in agreement with the measurements acquired by a total station instrument.The proposed methodology provides new insights and references for the applications of TLS in tunnel deformation monitoring,which can also be extended to other engineering applications.

Second premolar agenesis is associated with mandibular form： a geometric morphometric analysis of mandibular cross-sections

The aim of this study was to compare mandibular form （i.e., size and shape） between patients with agenesis of the lower second premolar （P2） and a control group with no agenesis. Three hypotheses were tested： （H1） agenesis causes a change in mandibular morphology because of inadequate alveolar ridge development in the area of the missing tooth （mandibular plasticity）; （H2） agenesis is caused by spatial limitations within the mandible （dental plasticity）; and （H3） common genetic/ epigenetic factors cause agenesis and affect mandibular form （pleiotropy）. A geometric morphometric analysis was applied to cross-sectional images of computed tomography （CT） scans of three matched groups （n= 50 each）： （1） regularly erupted P2; （2） agenesis of P2 and the primary second molar in situ; and （3） agenesis of P2 and the primary second molar missing for 〉3 months. Cross-sections of the three areas of interest （first premolar, P2, first molar） were digitized with 23 landmarks and superimposed by a generalized Procrustes analysis. On average, the mandibular cross-sections were narrower and shorter in patients with P2 agenesis compared with that in the control group. Both agenesis groups featured a pronounced submandibular fossa. These differences extended at least one tooth beyond the agenesis-affected region. Taken together with the large interindividual variation that resulted in massively overlapping group distributions, these findings support genetic and/or epigenetic pleiotropy （H3） as the most likely origin of the observed covariation between mandibular form and odontogenesis. Clinically, reduced dimensions and greater variability of mandibular form, as well as a pronounced submandibular fossa, should be expected during the treatment planning of patients with P2 agenesis.

Theoretical studies on the photoionization cross-sections of solid silver

An alternative expression for photoionization cross-section of atoms or molecules and a dielectric influence function （DIF） in a high-density system proposed recently are used to study the photoionization cross-sections of solid silver. It is suggested that a density turning point （DTP） of a photoionized system may be viewed as the critical point where the photoionization properties of atoms in a real system may have a notable change. The results show that the present theoretical photoionization cross-sections are in good agreement with the experimental results of a silver crystal both in structure and in magnitude.

Large eddy simulation of supersonic flow in ducts with complex cross-sections

Large Eddy Simulation(LES)has been employed for the investigation of supersonic flow characteristics in five ducts with varying cross-sectional geometries.The numerical results reveal that flow channel configurations exert a considerable influence on the mainstream flow and the near-wall flow behavior.In contrast to straight ducts,square-to-circular and rectangular-to-circular ducts exhibit thicker boundary layers and a greater presence of vortex structures.Given the same inlet area,rectangular-to-circular ducts lead to higher flow drag force and total pressure loss than square-to-circular ducts.Characterized by the substantial flow separation and shock waves,the"S-shaped duct shows significant vertically-asymmetric characteristics.

3-D RECONSTRUCTION OF SHAPE AND STRUCTURE FOR THE SPACE OBJECT FROM SERIAL CROSS-SECTIONS

A new method for reconstructing a 3-dimensional object from serial cross-sectionsis presented in this paper.The method is based on the principle of sampling and considersevery point in cross-sections as a sampling point and performs the interpolating of nonlinearfunction with these sampling points.Compared with other methods,this method has manyadvantages such as higher precision and fewer requested known sampling points.The result ofreconstruction with this method is an“entity”which involves the exterior shape and interiorconstruction information of the object simultaneously.

Metal–Organic Gel Leading to Customized Magnetic‑Coupling Engineering in Carbon Aerogels for Excellent Radar Stealth and Thermal Insulation Performances

Metal–organic gel(MOG)derived composites are promising multi-functional materials due to their alterable composition,identifiable chemical homogeneity,tunable shape,and porous structure.Herein,stable metal–organic hydrogels are prepared by regulating the complexation effect,solution polarity and curing speed.Meanwhile,collagen peptide is used to facilitate the fabrication of a porous aerogel with excellent physical properties as well as the homogeneous dispersion of magnetic particles during calcination.Subsequently,two kinds of heterometallic magnetic coupling systems are obtained through the application of Kirkendall effect.FeCo/nitrogen-doped carbon(NC)aerogel demonstrates an ultra-strong microwave absorption of−85 dB at an ultra-low loading of 5%.After reducing the time taken by atom shifting,a FeCo/Fe3O4/NC aerogel containing virus-shaped particles is obtained,which achieves an ultra-broad absorption of 7.44 GHz at an ultra-thin thickness of 1.59 mm due to the coupling effect offered by dual-soft-magnetic particles.Furthermore,both aerogels show excellent thermal insulation property,and their outstanding radar stealth performances in J-20 aircraft are confirmed by computer simulation technology.The formation mechanism of MOG is also discussed along with the thermal insulation and electromagnetic wave absorption mechanism of the aerogels,which will enable the development and application of novel and lightweight stealth coatings.

Association between triglyceride-glucose index and colorectal polyps:A retrospective cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND Colorectal polyps(CPs)are frequently occurring abnormal growths in the colorectum,and are a primary precursor of colorectal cancer(CRC).The triglyceride-glucose(TyG)index is a novel marker that assesses metabolic health and insulin resistance,and has been linked to gastrointestinal cancers.AIM To investigate the potential association between the TyG index and CPs,as the relation between them has not been documented.METHODS A total of 2537 persons undergoing a routine health physical examination and colonoscopy at The First People's Hospital of Kunshan,Jiangsu Province,China,between January 2020 and December 2022 were included in this retrospective cross-sectional study.After excluding individuals who did not meet the eligibility criteria,descriptive statistics were used to compare characteristics between patients with and without CPs.Logistic regression analyses were conducted to determine the associations between the TyG index and the prevalence of CPs.The TyG index was calculated using the following formula:Ln[triglyceride(mg/dL)×glucose(mg/dL)/2].The presence and types of CPs was determined based on data from colonoscopy reports and pathology reports.RESULTS A nonlinear relation between the TyG index and the prevalence of CPs was identified,and exhibited a curvilinear pattern with a cut-off point of 2.31.A significant association was observed before the turning point,with an odds ratio(95% confidence interval)of 1.70(1.40,2.06),P<0.0001.However,the association between the TyG index and CPs was not significant after the cut-off point,with an odds ratio(95% confidence interval)of 0.57(0.27,1.23),P=0.1521.CONCLUSION Our study revealed a curvilinear association between the TyG index and CPs in Chinese individuals,suggesting its potential utility in developing colonoscopy screening strategies for preventing CRC.

Mental health and insomnia problems in healthcare workers after the COVID-19 pandemic:A multicenter cross-sectional study

BACKGROUND Healthcare workers(HCWs)are at increased risk of contracting coronavirus disease 2019(COVID-19)as well as worsening mental health problems and insomnia.These problems can persist for a long period,even after the pandemic.However,less is known about this topic.AIM To analyze mental health,insomnia problems,and their influencing factors in HCWs after the COVID-19 pandemic.METHODS This multicenter cross-sectional,hospital-based study was conducted from June 1,2023 to June 30,2023,which was a half-year after the end of the COVID-19 emergency.Region-stratified population-based cluster sampling was applied at the provincial level for Chinese HCWs.Symptoms such as anxiety,depression,and insomnia were evaluated by the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7,Patient Health Questionnaire-9,and Insomnia Severity Index.Factors influencing the symptoms were identified by multivariable logistic regression.RESULTS A total of 2000 participants were invited,for a response rate of 70.6%.A total of 1412 HCWs[618(43.8%)doctors,583(41.3%)nurses and 211(14.9%)nonfrontline],254(18.0%),231(16.4%),and 289(20.5%)had symptoms of anxiety,depression,and insomnia,respectively;severe symptoms were found in 58(4.1%),49(3.5%),and 111(7.9%)of the participants.Nurses,female sex,and hospitalization for COVID-19 were risk factors for anxiety,depression,and insomnia symptoms;moreover,death from family or friends was a risk factor for insomnia symptoms.During the COVID-19 outbreak,most[1086(76.9%)]of the participating HCWs received psychological interventions,while nearly all[994(70.4%)]of them had received public psychological education.Only 102(7.2%)of the HCWs received individual counseling from COVID-19.CONCLUSION Although the mental health and sleep problems of HCWs were relieved after the COVID-19 pandemic,they still faced challenges and greater risks than did the general population.Identifying risk factors would help in providing targeted interventions.In addition,although a major proportion of HCWs have received public psychological education,individual interventions are still insufficient.

Triple Differential Cross-Sections for Ionization of H(3d) by Incident Electron

Triple differential cross sections (TDCS) are estimated for the ionization of metastable 3d-state hydrogen atoms by electron at 250 eV for various kinematic conditions pursuing a multiple scattering theory. The present new results are compared with the theoretical results of hydrogenic different metastable states as well as the hydrogenic ground state experimental data. Obtained new finding results are in good qualitative agreement with those of compared theories. The present results give an immense opportunity for experimental trial in the field of ionization problems.

Modulated-ISRJ rejection using online dictionary learning for synthetic aperture radar imagery

In electromagnetic countermeasures circumstances,synthetic aperture radar(SAR)imagery usually suffers from severe quality degradation from modulated interrupt sampling repeater jamming(MISRJ),which usually owes considerable coherence with the SAR transmission waveform together with periodical modulation patterns.This paper develops an MISRJ suppression algorithm for SAR imagery with online dictionary learning.In the algorithm,the jamming modulation temporal properties are exploited with extracting and sorting MISRJ slices using fast-time autocorrelation.Online dictionary learning is followed to separate real signals from jamming slices.Under the learned representation,time-varying MISRJs are suppressed effectively.Both simulated and real-measured SAR data are also used to confirm advantages in suppressing time-varying MISRJs over traditional methods.