Attenuation of wave in a thin plasma layer by finite-difference time-domain analysis

Abstract

The attenuation of the electromagnetic wave in a thin plasma layer at high pressure is investigated with finite-difference time-domain method. The effects of the plasma thickness, plasma density distribution function, collision frequency between electron and neutrals, and the frequency of incident wave on the attenuation of the electromagnetic wave are discussed. Numerical results indicate that the phase shift is sensitive to plasma distributions, and the attenuation of wave depends on its frequency, the plasma thickness, plasma density distribution, and collision frequency. In the case of a thin plasma layer, the attenuation of wave is strong only at the low band of frequency for the different distribution functions with a certain collision frequency. Plasmas with a certain thickness for high collision frequency are capable of absorbing microwave radiation over a wider frequency range for the different plasma distributions.