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All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1993

Ultraviolet spectropolarimetry of high redshift quasars with the Hubble Space Telescope

Ultraviolet spectropolarimetry of three bright high-redshift low polarization quasars (LPQ's) was obtained with the Faint Object Spectrograph of the Hubble Space Telescope. Two of the quasars, PG 1634+706 and PG 2302+029, had polarizations of rho is approximately equal to 0.5-1.0 percent throughout the ultraviolet, and showed no significant variation of polarization amplitude or position angle with wavelength. PG 2302+029 was also marginally (2.4 sigma) circularly polarized in the optical continuum. For the highest redshift quasar, PG 1222+228 (Ton 1530), the polarization was measured down to rest wavelengths below 800 A. Although the continuum of PG 1222+228 was weakened by Lyman limit absorption from an intergalactic gas cloud, the polarization increased sharply from 1 percent to about 4.5 percent, a change of 4 sigma significance. This abrupt rise in polarization does not appear attributable to any known instrumental artifact. These UV polarizations were only slightly less than those previously observed for these same objects in the optical. The polarization spectra were flat with a typical slope of the polarized flux pF(sub upsilon) varies as upsilon(exp -0.8 plus or minus 0.5). Unlike the polarization spectra of several high luminosity Seyfert 1 nuclei studied previously, such a flat wavelength dependence of polarization cannot be explained by scattering from dust grains. The hypotheses that the polarization in these quasars is produced by transmission through aligned interstellar grains (in the Milky Way or the host galaxy), or by a synchrotron power law component, also appear to be ruled out. These observed spectra are consistent with a wavelength-independent polarization proportional to the total nonstellar light or, possibly, to the contribution of the blue thermal component.

Impey, Chris D.↗
DOE OSTI2022

Radiative transfer in stars by feebly interacting bosons

Starting from first principles, we study radiative transfer by new feebly-interacting bosons (FIBs) such as axions, axion-like particles (ALPs), dark photons, and others. Our key simplification is to include only boson emission or absorption (including decay), but not scattering between different modes of the radiation field. Based on a given distribution of temperature and FIB absorption rate in a star, we derive explicit volume-integral expressions for the boson luminosity, reaching from the free-streaming to the strong-trapping limit. The latter is seen explicitly to correspond to quasi-thermal emission from a “FIB sphere” according to the Stefan-Boltzmann law. Our results supersede expressions and approximations found in the recent literature on FIB emission from a supernova core and, for radiatively unstable FIBs, provide explicit expressions for the nonlocal (“ballistic”) transfer of energy recently discussed in horizontal-branch stars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2021

Up‐And‐Coming Advances in Optical and Microwave Nonreciprocity: From Classical to Quantum Realm

Reciprocity is a fundamental physical principle that roots in the time‐reversal symmetry of physical laws. It allows making predictions on any arbitrary complex system's response and operation and hence simplifies the analysis. However, there are many practical situations in which it is advantageous to break reciprocity, e.g., isolators preventing wave scattering back to lasers and generators, full‐duplex systems for multiplexing transmission and receiving in the same channel, nonreciprocal cavity excitation, and protection of fragile states of superconductor quantum computers from thermal noise. The most widespread approach to time‐reversal symmetry breaking and nonreciprocity based on magnetic field biasing suffers from bulkiness, cost ineffectiveness, and loss, motivating researchers and engineers to search for more practical approaches. Herein, the up‐and‐coming advances in optical nonreciprocity, including new materials (Weyl semimetals, topological insulators, metasurfaces), active structures, time‐modulation, parity‐time (PT)‐symmetry breaking, nonlinearity combined with a structural asymmetry, quantum nonlinearity, unidirectional gain and loss, chiral quantum states and valley polarization are overviewed. A general description of nonreciprocal systems is provided and the pros and cons of the mentioned approaches to nonreciprocity are discussed.

71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS, GENERAL PHYSIC↗
NASA NTRS2000

The Origin of the X-Ray and Ultraviolet Emission in NGC 7469

We present a spectral analysis of a approx 30 day, near-continuous observation of the Seyfert 1 galaxy NGC 7469 with RXTE. Daily integrations show strong spectral changes during the observation. Our main result is that we find the X-ray spectral index to be correlated with the UV flux. Furthermore, the broadband X-ray photon flux is also correlated with the UV continuum. These correlations point toward a model in which the X-rays originate via thermal Comptonization of UV seed photons. Furthermore, the UV is also correlated with the extrapolation of the X-ray power law into the soft X-ray/EUV region. Our data analysis therefore reopens the possibility that the UV photons and their variability arise from reprocessing, as long as the primary source of heating is photoelectric absorption in the re-processor, rather than Compton down-scattering. A coherent picture of the X-ray/UV variability can therefore be constructed whereby absorption and reprocessing of EUV/soft X-rays in a standard accretion disk produce a variable seed photon distribution, which is in turn up-scattered into the X-ray band. We also find a significant correlation between the 2-10 keV flux and the 6.4 keV iron K-alpha line, suggesting that at least some portion of the line originates within approx. 1 light day of the X-ray continuum source. Neither the power-law photon index nor the Compton reflection component are correlated with the 2-10 keV flux. The latter is not correlated with the iron K-alpha line flux either. We do find an apparent correlation between the X-ray spectral index and the strength of the Compton reflection component. In an Appendix we show, however, that this can be produced by a combination of statistical and systematic errors. We conclude that the apparent variations in the Compton reflection component may be an artifact of these effects.

Nandra, K.↗
NASA NTRS2002

Using Monte-Carlo Simulations to Study the Disk Structure in Cygnus X-1

As the first dynamically determined black hole X-ray binary system, Cygnus X-1 has been studied extensively. However, its broad-band spectra in hard state with BeppoSAX is still not well understood. Besides the soft excess described by the multi-color disk model (MCD), the power- law component and a broad excess feature above 10 keV (disk reflection component), there is also an additional soft component around 1 keV, whose origin is not known currently.We propose that the additional soft component is due to the thermal Comptonization process between the s oft disk photon and the warm plasma cloud just above the disk.i.e., a warm layer. We use Monte-Carlo technique t o simulate this Compton scattering process and build several table models based on our simulation results.

Yao, Y.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Systematic over-estimation of lattice thermal conductivity in materials with electrically-resistive grain boundaries

Reducing the thermal conductivity κ of a material via nano-structuring to create small grain sizes is one of the most common strategies to improve thermoelectric materials. In such polycrystalline materials heat carrying phonons are scattered at the grain boundaries, which directly improves the thermoelectric quality factor and ultimately the figure-of-merit zT. In some cases, however, such as in Mg 3 Sb 2 , SnSe, and Mg 2 Si an opposite trend is found where higher lattice thermal conductivity reported in small grain polycrystalline material than in large grain or single crystal materials. This unphysical result indicates a problem with the conventional use of the Wiedemann–Franz law. Here, we trace this problematic finding to the electrical resistance at the grain boundaries, which leads to an overestimation of the phonon or lattice contribution of the thermal conductivity κ L . In materials with significant grain boundary electrical resistance, the estimated electronic contribution to the thermal conductivity LσT is low because the measured electrical conductivity σ is low. However within the grain electrons may still be transporting more heat than the total conductivity suggests, leading to an overestimation of κ L if the conventional κ L = κ – LσT is used with the measured values of κ and σ. Here, the overestimation of κL in small-grain samples is shown to be pervasive across a broad range of thermoelectric materials, including Mg 3 Sb 2 , Mg 2 Si, PbTe, PbSe, SnSe, (Hf,Zr)CoSb, CoSb 3 , and Bi 2 Te 3 alloys, and a correction is necessary to properly understand and predict their charge and heat transport.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
NASA NTRS2002

Studying the Warm Layer and the Hardening Factor in Cygnus X-1

As the first dynamically determined black hole X-ray binary system, Cygnus X-1 has been studied extensively. However, its broadband spectrum observed with BeppoSax is still not well understood. Besides the soft excess described by the multi-color disk model (MCD), the power-law hard component and a broad excess feature above 10 keV (a disk reflection component), there is also an additional soft component around 1 keV, whose origin is not known currently. Here we propose that the additional soft component is due to the thermal Comptonization between the soft disk photons and a warm plasma cloud just above the disk, i.e., a warm layer. We use the Monte-Carlo technique to simulate this Compton scattering process and build a table model based on our simulation results. With this table model, we study the disk structure and estimate the hardening factor to the MCD component in Cygnus X-1.

Yao, Yangsen↗
DOE OSTI2026

Electric accumulation of millicharged particles

A terrestrial population of millicharged particles that interact significantly with normal matter can arise if they make up a dark matter subcomponent or if they are light enough to be produced in cosmic-ray air showers. Such particles thermalize to terrestrial temperatures through repeated scatters with normal matter in Earth’s environment. We show that a simple electrified shell (for example, a Van de Graaff generator) functions as an efficient accumulator of such room-temperature millicharged particles, parametrically enhancing their local density by as much as 12 orders of magnitude. This can be used to boost the sensitivity of any detector housed in the shell’s interior, such as ion traps and tests of Coulomb’s law. In a companion paper, we apply this specifically to Cavendish tests of Coulomb’s law, and we show that a well-established setup can probe a large region of unexplored parameter space, with sensitivity to the irreducible density of millicharged particles generated from cosmic rays that outperforms future accelerator searches for sub-GeV masses.

Berlin, Asher [Fermilab] (ORCID:0000000211561482)↗
NASA NTRS1995

Thermal emission from particulate surfaces: A comparison of scattering models with measured spectra

Emissivity spectra of particulate mineral samples are highly dependent on particle size when that size is comparable to the wavelength of light emitted (5-50 micrometers for the midinfrared). Proper geologic interpretation of data from planetary infrared spectrometers will require that these particle size effects be well understood. To address this issue, samples of quartz powders were produced with narrow, well-characterized particle size distributions. Mean particle diameters in these samples ranged from 15 to 227 micrometers. Emission spectra of these powders allow the first detailed comparison of the complex spectral variations with particle size observed in laboratory data with the predictions of radiative transfer models. Four such models are considered here. Hapke's relectance theory (converted to emissivity via Kirchoff's law) is the first model tested. Hapke's more recently published emission theory is also employed. The third model, the 'Mie/Conel' model, uses Mie single scattering with a two-stream approximation for multiple scattering. This model, like the first, is a converted reflec- tance model. Mie scattering assumes particles are both spherical and well separated, which is not true for the quartz powders, but includes diffraction effects. The fourth model uses the Mie solution for single scattering by spheres and inputs those results into the multiple scattering formalism of Hapke's emission theory. The results of the four models are considered in relation to the values of the optical constants n and k. We have grouped these as class 1 (k large), class 2 (k moderate, n is approximately 2), class 3 (k small, n is approximately 2), and class 4 (k small, n is approximately 1). In general, the Mie/Hapke hybrid model does best at predicting variations with grain size. In particular, it predicts changes of the correct pattern, although incorrect magnitude, for class 1 bands, where large increases in emissivity with decreasing grain size are observed. This model also does an excellent job on moderate (class 2) and very weak and intraband (class 3) regions, and correctly predicts the emission maximum and its invariance with grain size near the Christiansen frequency (class 4). The Mie/Hapke hybrid model also has the fewest free parameters of the four models examined, while maintaining the most physical treatment of the radiative transfer. The Mie/Conel model performs as well as the Mie/Hapke hybrid model in strong bands (class 1) but does not accurately model the behavior of moderate (class 2) and very weak (class 3) bands.

Moersch, J. E.↗
NASA NTRS2014

How Dusty Is Alpha Centauri? Excess or Non-excess over the Infrared Photospheres of Main-sequence Stars

Context. Debris discs around main-sequence stars indicate the presence of larger rocky bodies. The components of the nearby, solar-type binary Centauri have metallicities that are higher than solar, which is thought to promote giant planet formation. Aims. We aim to determine the level of emission from debris around the stars in the Cen system. This requires knowledge of their photospheres.Having already detected the temperature minimum, Tmin, of CenA at far-infrared wavelengths, we here attempt to do the same for the moreactive companion Cen B. Using the Cen stars as templates, we study the possible eects that Tmin may have on the detectability of unresolveddust discs around other stars. Methods.We used Herschel-PACS, Herschel-SPIRE, and APEX-LABOCA photometry to determine the stellar spectral energy distributions in thefar infrared and submillimetre. In addition, we used APEX-SHeFI observations for spectral line mapping to study the complex background around Cen seen in the photometric images. Models of stellar atmospheres and of particulate discs, based on particle simulations and in conjunctionwith radiative transfer calculations, were used to estimate the amount of debris around these stars. Results. For solar-type stars more distant than Cen, a fractional dust luminosity fd LdustLstar 2 107 could account for SEDs that do not exhibit the Tmin eect. This is comparable to estimates of fd for the Edgeworth-Kuiper belt of the solar system. In contrast to the far infrared,slight excesses at the 2:5 level are observed at 24 m for both CenA and B, which, if interpreted as due to zodiacal-type dust emission, wouldcorrespond to fd (13) 105, i.e. some 102 times that of the local zodiacal cloud. Assuming simple power-law size distributions of the dustgrains, dynamical disc modelling leads to rough mass estimates of the putative Zodi belts around the Cen stars, viz.4106 M$ of 4 to 1000 msize grains, distributed according to n(a) a3:5. Similarly, for filled-in Tmin emission, corresponding Edgeworth-Kuiper belts could account for103 M$ of dust. Conclusions. Our far-infrared observations lead to estimates of upper limits to the amount of circumstellar dust around the stars CenA and B.Light scattered andor thermally emitted by exo-Zodi discs will have profound implications for future spectroscopic missions designed to searchfor biomarkers in the atmospheres of Earth-like planets. The far-infrared spectral energy distribution of Cen B is marginally consistent with thepresence of a minimum temperature region in the upper atmosphere of the star. We also show that an Cen A-like temperature minimum mayresult in an erroneous apprehension about the presence of dust around other, more distant stars.

metallicities↗
NASA NTRS1985

Acceleration of energetic particles

Acceleration of some particles from the background plasma to highly superthermal energies is a common feature of collisionless shocks in interplanetary space. The complete in situ measurements of bulk flows, thermal plasma, electromagnetic waves and energetic particles available for interplanetary shocks both suggest and test the models of shock acceleration in the solar system and the rest of the universe. This tutorial will review the present state of shock acceleration theory. Scatter-free acceleration by grad B drift in the plasma electric field E = -V x B/c, and diffusive acceleration resulting from scattering by Alfven waves in the plasma on both sides of the shock are discussed. The diffusive theory in simple steady state gives power-law spectra, but also shows the effects of time-dependent shocks and injection rates, escape and other losses, the self-consistent Alfven wave spectra, and plasma flow fields affected by diffusive energetic particle acceleration.

Forman, M. A.↗
DOE OSTI2020

Clathrate BaNi 2 P 4 : An Interplay of Heat and Charge Transport Due to Strong Host–Guest Interactions

Heat and charge transport properties of the metallic unconventional clathrate BaNi 2 P 4 , hosting Ba cations in oversized Ni 8 P 16 cages, are investigated. A novel method of single-crystal growth was developed, yielding 2–3 mm sized crystals of BaNi 2 P 4 . We also developed a setup to accurately measure thermal conductivity and electrical resistivity of the synthesized single crystals in a wide temperature range avoiding crystal remounting. BaNi 2 P 4 has a metallic temperature dependence of its electrical resistivity (decreasing with decreasing temperature) and manifests an unconventional T 2 power law for 50 K < T < 300 K; below 50 K, the power-law exponent increases gradually such that below 10 K the power law is T 5 , a predicted but extremely rarely experimentally observed dependence for peculiar electron–phonon interactions. Furthermore, electronic band structure calculations, consistent with measurements of de Haas–van Alphen oscillations, show large band dispersions with significant contributions of Ba orbitals to states near the Fermi level, which is atypical for clathrates. The thermal properties of BaNi 2 P 4 were probed using a combination of variable-temperature single-crystal X-ray diffraction experiments, heat capacity measurements, first-principles phonon dispersion calculations, and inelastic neutron scattering measurements. BaNi 2 P 4 exhibits significant hybridization of the Ba-guest and Ni–P-framework vibrational modes, which may be enhanced via the detected split of the Ba position, which results in strong Ba-framework interactions.

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE↗
DOE OSTI2021

NuSTAR Observations of Abell 2163: Constraints on Non-thermal Emission

Since the first non-thermal reports of inverse Compton (IC) emission from the intracluster medium (ICM) of galaxy clusters at hard X-ray energies, we have yet to unambiguously confirm IC emission in observations with newer facilities. RXTE detected IC emission in one of the hottest known clusters, Abell 2163 (A2163), a massive merging cluster with a giant radio halo—the presumed source of relativistic electrons IC scattering CMB photons to X-ray energies. The cluster's redshift (z ~ 0.2) allows its thermal and non-thermal radio emission to fit the field of view of the Nuclear Spectroscopic Telescope Array (NuSTAR), permitting a deep observation capable of confirming or ruling out the RXTE report. The IC flux provides constraints on the average magnetic field strength in a cluster. To determine the global diffuse IC emission in A2163, we fit its global NuSTAR spectrum with four models: single- (1T) and two-temperature (2T), 1T+power-law component (T+IC), and multi-temperature+power law (9T+IC). Each represents different characterizations of the thermal ICM emission, with power-law components added to represent IC emission. We find that the 3–30 keV spectrum can be described by purely thermal emission, with a global average temperature of kT = (11.8 ± 0.2) keV. The IC flux is constrained to <4.0 × 10 –12 erg s –1 cm –2 using the 1T+IC model and <1.6 × 10 –12 erg s –1 cm –2 with the more physical 9T+IC model, both to 90% confidence levels. Here, combining these limits with 1.4 GHz diffuse radio data from the VLA, we find the average magnetic field strength to be >0.22 μG and >0.35 μG, respectively, providing the strongest constraints on these values in A2163 to date.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS2003

Non-Thermal Hard X-Ray Emission in Galaxy Clusters Observed with the BeppoSAX PDS

We study the X-ray emission in a Sample of galaxy clusters using the BeppoSAX PDS instrument in the 20 - 80 keV energy band. We estimate the non-thermal hard X-ray cluster emission (HXR) by modeling the thermal contribution from the cluster gas and the non-thermal contamination from the unobscured AGN in the clusters. We also evaluate the systematic uncertainties due to the background fluctuations. Assuming negligible contamination from the obscured AGN, the resulting non-thermal component is detected at a 2 sigma level in approx. 50% of the non-significantly AGN-contaminated clusters: A2142, A2199, A2256, A3376, Coma, Ophiuchus and Virgo. The data are consistent with a scenario whereby relaxed clusters have no hard X-ray component of non-thermal origin, whereas merger clusters do. The co-added spectrum of the above clusters indicates a power-law spectrum for the HXR with a photon index of 2.8+0.3-0.4 in the 12 - 115 keV band, and we find indication that it has extended distribution. These indications argue against significant contamination from obscured AGN, which have harder spectra and centrally concentrated distribution. These results are supportive of the assumption of the merger shock acceleration of electrons in clusters, which has been proposed as a possible origin of the non-thermal hard X-ray emission models. Assuming that the Cosmic Microwave Background photons experience Inverse Compton scattering from the merger-accelerated relativistic electrons, and thus produce the observed HXR, the measured hard X-ray slope corresponds to a differential momentum spectra of the relativistic electrons with a slope of mu = 3.8 - 5.0. In presence of cluster magnetic fields this relativistic electron population produces synchrotron emission with a spectral index of 1.4 - 2.1, consistent with radio halo observations of merger clusters. Thus both hard X-ray and radio observations of merger clusters are consistent with the Inverse Compton model. The observed slope of HXR is also consistent with that predicted by the non-thermal bremsstrahlung, which chus cannot be ruled by the fit to the current data, even though this model requires an extreme, untenable cluster energetics. Assuming centrally concentrated distribution of HXR, the data requires a harder slope for the HXR spectrum, which is consistent with secondary electron models, but this model yields a worse fit to the PDS data and thus seems to be disfavored over the primary electron Inverse Compton model.

Nevalainen, J.↗
NASA NTRS1990

First-order Fermi particle acceleration by relativistic shocks

Monte Carlo calculations of test particle spectra and acceleration times are presented from first-order Fermi particle acceleration for parallel shocks with arbitrary flow velocities and compression ratios r up to seven, shock velocities u1 up to 0.98c, and injection energies ranging from thermal to highly superthermal. Far above the injection energy, the spectra are well-approximated by a power law and the spectra are always harder than for nonrelativistic shocks. Approximate analytic expression are given for the spectral slope as a function of u1 and r. The acceleration time as a function of particle energy is less than for nonrelativistic shocks by a factor that increases with u1 and is about three for u1 = 0.98c. It is confirmed that the spectrum for pitch-angle diffusion is considerably steeper than for large-angle scattering for the same shock parameters.

Ellison, Donald C.↗
NASA NTRS1986

Optical, radio, and infrared observations of compact H II regions. V - The Hourglass in M8

Multiwavelength observations of the inner core of the M8 Hourglass region are presented, including VLA interferometric maps, 2-4 micron and 8-13 micron spectroscopy, photometric mapping in the K (2.2 micron) and L (3.45 micron) bands and in the 3.28 micron dust-emission feature, optical CCD imaging, and optical and infrared polarimetry. The compact H II region is excited by the O7 V star Herschel 36, and its apparent bipolar structure at optical wavelengths may be due to variable line-of-sight extinction and scattered light. Standard reddening laws are not applicable in the Hourglass region. A power law extinction lambda exp -0.78 yields consistent agreement between ultraviolet, optical, and infrared extinction estimates and suggests that one component of the total grain distribution is on the average larger than that found in the interstellar medium. The spatial distribution of the 3.28 micron dust-emission feature shows that the feature emission is associated with the boundary layer in the H II region/molecular cloud interface. The observations favor models in which feature emission comes from small refractory grains rather than from fluorescence or thermal emission from volatile mantles.

Woodward, C. E.↗
NASA NTRS2001

A Broad-Band X-Ray Study of the Geminga Pulsar

We present a comprehensive study of the Geminga pulsar at energies 0.1-10 keV using data from the ASCA, ROSAT, and EUVE satellites. The bulk of the soft X-ray flux can be parameterized as a blackbody of T = (5.6 +/- 0.6) x 10(exp 5) K, occupying a fraction 0. 10 - 0.64 of the surface area of the neutron star at the parallax distance of 160 pc. The ASCA detection of Geminga resolves the nature of the harder X-ray component previously discovered by ROSAT in favor of nonthermal emission, rather than thermal emission from a heated polar cap. The hard X-ray spectrum can be fitted by a power-law of energy index 1.0 +/- 0.5. The hard X-ray light curve has a strong main peak and a weak secondary peak; its total pulsed fraction is = 55%. Three ROSAT PSPC observations show significant variability of Geminga's light curve. In particular, a peculiar energy dependence of the modulation in the soft X-ray component, dubbed the "Geminga effect" in the original PSPC data, is not present in later observations. In addition, fine structure in the soft X-ray light curve, interpreted as eclipses due to cyclotron resonance scattering by a plasma screen on the closed magnetic field lines, almost disappeared in the most recent observations. All of the variable properties of Geminga can probably be associated with the nonthermal process that supplies e(sup +, sup -) pairs to its inner magnetosphere.

Halpern, Jules P.↗
NASA NTRS1993

Polarimetric thermal emission from rough surfaces

Recent theoretical works have suggested the potential of passive polarimetry in the remote sensing of geophysical media. It was shown that the third Stokes parameter U of the thermal emission may become larger for azimuthally asymmetric fields of observation. In order to investigate the potential applicability of passive polarimetry to the remote sensing of ocean surface, measurements of the polarimetric thermal emission from a sinusoidal water surface and a numerical study of the polarimetric thermal emission from randomly rough ocean surfaces were performed. Measurements of sinusoidal water surface thermal emission were performed using a sinusoidal water surface which was created by placing a thin sheet of fiberglass with a sinusoidal profile in two dimensions extended infinitely in the third dimension onto a water surface. The theory of thermal emission from a 'two-layer' periodic surface is derived and the exact solution is performed using both the extended boundary condition method (EBC) and the method of moments (MOM). The theoretical predictions are found to be in good agreement with the experimental results once the effects of the radiometer antenna pattern are included and the contribution of background noise to the measurements is modeled. The experimental results show that the U parameter indicates the direction of periodicity of the water surface and can approach values of up to 30 K for the surface observed. Next, a numerical study of polarimetric thermal emission from randomly rough surfaces was performed. A Monte Carlo technique utilizing an exact method for calculating thermal emission was chosen for the study to avoid any of the limitations of the commonly used approximate methods in rough surface scattering. In this Monte Carlo technique, a set of finite rough surface profiles in two dimensions with desired statistics was generated and extended periodically. The polarimetric thermal emission from each surface of the set was then calculated using both the EBC and the MOM and the results were averaged. The surface statistics chosen were intended to model a wind perturbed ocean surface in the X to Ku band microwave region. The results indicate that the U parameter is sensitive to the azimuthal angle between the surface periodicity and the looking angle and to the rms height of the surface, and that the U parameter is fairly insensitive to variations in polar angle, permittivity, surface power law spectrum, and surface spectrum high frequency cutoff. These properties give further strength to the idea of using the U parameter to detect wind direction over the ocean.

Johnson, J. T.↗