Microstructure Design Method for Multineedle Whisker Radar Absorbing Material

Multineedle whisker radar absorbing material (RAM) is a new kind of stealth nanocomposite, whose radar absorbing property is a function of microstructure. The availability of appropriate simulation models taking account of the microscopic structure of such interesting composite is important for its design and performance optimization. In this letter, a novel simulation model is presented to carry out the microstructure design for improving radar absorbing performance of multineedle whisker RAM. First, this computational model is established according to equivalent medium theory and transmission line method. Then, calculative curve is compared to existing experimental data, and good agreement suggests that the proposed model can be a useful tool for microstructure optimization of this kind of RAM. Finally, the microstructures of a three-layer multineedle zinc oxide whisker (M-ZnOw) RAM are optimized by using the simulation model and particle swarm algorithm, and the numerical results demonstrate the potential of microstructure design for improving the radar absorbing property of such interesting composite.