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Full-Text Articles in Engineering

Greenland Snow Accumulation Estimates From Satellite Radar Scatterometer Data, Mark R. Drinkwater, David G. Long, Andrew W. Bingham Dec 2001

Greenland Snow Accumulation Estimates From Satellite Radar Scatterometer Data, Mark R. Drinkwater, David G. Long, Andrew W. Bingham

Faculty Publications

Data collected by the C band ERS-2 wind scatterometer (EScat), the Ku band ADEOS-1 NASA scatterometer (NSCAT), and the Ku band SeaWinds on QuikScat (QSCAT) satellite instruments are used to illustrate spatiotemporal variability in snow accumulation on the Greenland ice sheet. Microwave radar backscatter images of Greenland are derived using the scatterometer image reconstruction (SIR) method at 3-day intervals over the periods 1991–1998 and 1996–1997 for EScat and NSCAT, respectively. The backscatter coefficient σ° normalized to 40° incidence, A, and gradient in backscatter, B, in the range 20°–60° are compared with historical snow accumulation data and recent measurements …


Stacked Subwavelength Gratings As Circular Polarization Filters, Gregory P. Nordin, P. C. Deguzman Nov 2001

Stacked Subwavelength Gratings As Circular Polarization Filters, Gregory P. Nordin, P. C. Deguzman

Faculty Publications

We have stacked subwavelength gratings (SWGs) on a single substrate to create a compact, integrated circular polarization filter. The SWGs consist of a wire grid polarizer and a broadband form-birefringent quarter-wave plate (QWP). Rigorous coupled-wave analysis was used to design the QWP for operation over the 3.5-5.0 m wavelength range. The fabricated silicon broadband QWP exhibited a phase retardance of 82-97° across this wavelength range. Two stacked structures are presented, each with a different wire grid polarizer fabricated on an organic planarization layer (SU-8) that is deposited on a QWP grating. Transmittance measurements of the first structure when illuminated with …


Characterization Of Two-Dimensional Finite-Aperture Wire Grid Polarizers By A Spectral-Domain Technique, Michael A. Jensen, Gregory P. Nordin Sep 2001

Characterization Of Two-Dimensional Finite-Aperture Wire Grid Polarizers By A Spectral-Domain Technique, Michael A. Jensen, Gregory P. Nordin

Faculty Publications

We investigate the transmission characteristics of perfectly conducting two-dimensional wire grid polarizers fabricated in finite and infinite apertures using a rigorous spectral-domain mode-matching method. Specifically, the transmission coefficient for both transverse-electric and transverse-magnetic polarizations, extinction ratio, and diffraction pattern are characterized for a wide variety of geometric and material parameters including aperture dimension, conducting wire fill factor, wire spacing, polarizer thickness, material dielectric constants, and incident wave arrival angle. The results indicate that the transmission behavior is largely insensitive to aperture dimension.


Electromagnetics, David V. Arnold, Richard H. Selfridge, Karl F. Warnick Jul 2001

Electromagnetics, David V. Arnold, Richard H. Selfridge, Karl F. Warnick

Faculty Publications

Many applications of electrical engineering require a knowledge of the behavior of voltages and currents in electronic devices and within conductors. In many other situations it is not enough to understand the behavior the voltages and currents in just the conductors and other components, but also the influence of the voltage and current on surrounding materials.


Fuel-Saving Strategies For Dual Spacecraft Interferometry Missions, Christopher A. Bailey, Timothy W. Mclain, Randal W. Beard Jul 2001

Fuel-Saving Strategies For Dual Spacecraft Interferometry Missions, Christopher A. Bailey, Timothy W. Mclain, Randal W. Beard

Faculty Publications

Separated spacecraft interferometry missions will require that spacecraft move in a coordinated fashion to ensure minimal and balanced consumption of fuel. This paper develops strategies for determining interferometry mission plans that result in significant fuel savings over standard approaches. Simulation results demonstrate that valuable reductions in fuel consumption can be realized by combining the retargeting and imaging maneuvers required to image multiple stellar sources. Fuel-optimal imaging strategies have been developed for two-spacecraft interferometry missions similar to the proposed StarLight mission using chained local optimization methods. Based on these strategies, sampling-pattern guidelines for space-borne interferometry missions have been developed.


Cooperative Control Of Uav Rendezvous, Timothy W. Mclain, Phillip R. Chandler, Steven Rasmussen, Meir Pachter Jun 2001

Cooperative Control Of Uav Rendezvous, Timothy W. Mclain, Phillip R. Chandler, Steven Rasmussen, Meir Pachter

Faculty Publications

The cooperative control of timing and synchronization of tasks of multiple unmanned air vehicles (UAVs) represents a valuable capability for a wide range of potential multi-UAV missions. This research addresses the specific problem of cooperative rendezvous in which multiple UAVs are to arrive at their targets simultaneously. The development of a rendezvous manager state machine and a cooperative control decomposition approach are described. Simulation results demonstrating the feasibility of the approach are presented.


Image Reconstruction And Enhanced Resolution Imaging From Irregular Samples, David G. Long, David S. Early Feb 2001

Image Reconstruction And Enhanced Resolution Imaging From Irregular Samples, David G. Long, David S. Early

Faculty Publications

While high resolution, regularly gridded observations are generally preferred in remote sensing, actual observations are often not evenly sampled and have lower-than-desired resolution. Hence, there is an interest in resolution enhancement and image reconstruction. This paper discusses a general theory and techniques for image reconstruction and creating enhanced resolution images from irregularly sampled data. Using irregular sampling theory, we consider how the frequency content in aperture function-attenuated sidelobes can be recovered from oversampled data using reconstruction techniques, thus taking advantage of the high frequency content of measurements made with nonideal aperture filters. We show that with minor modification, the algebraic …