The RCS simulation of plasma plume of missile

This paper studies how to simulate the electromagnetic scattering of the missile plume plasma in HF and VHF band using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) algorithm. Based on the chemical equilibrium flow assumption, the electron density at the exit of the nozzle is determined using the minimum free energy rule. A numerical model based on Auxiliary Difference Equation (ADE) was derived to simulate the plasma in time domain and the calculating results were compared with that obtained from Z transform model. The simulation results of plume RCS demonstrate the feasibility of detecting the missile plume using radars, especially low frequency ones.