Ray approximations to wave propagation in complex lossy cavities

The authors investigate the application of ray theory to closed lossy cavity (nonresonant) structures with continuous-wave (CW) excitations which consist of homogeneous material cavity interiors with material coatings on the walls. A generalized ray path prediction scheme is used to determine the ray propagation paths. With this ray information, the field distribution within the cavity can be determined by geometrical optics. The analysis can be performed on either two- or three-dimensional cavities. To demonstrate the accuracy of the ray technique, data from the finite-element method are compared with the ray technique for a simple two-dimensional rectangular cavity. These comparisons indicate that this ray technique may be successfully used to approximately determine the field behavior inside a nonresonant closed cavity.<>