Inverse scattering theory is a major theme of applied mathematics, and it has applications to such diverse areas as medical imaging, geophysical exploration, and nondestructive testing. The inverse scattering problem is both nonlinear and ill-posed, thus presenting particular problems in the development of efficient inversion algorithms. Although linearized models continue to play an important role in many applications, an increased need to focus on problems in which multiple scattering effects cannot be ignored has led to a central role for nonlinearity, and the possibility of collecting large amounts of data over limited regions of space means that the ill-posed nature of the inverse scattering problem has become a problem of central importance.? Initial efforts to address the nonlinear and the ill-posed nature of the inverse scattering problem focused on nonlinear optimization methods. While efficient in many situations, strong a priori information is necessary for their implementation. This problem led to a qualitative approach to inverse scattering theory in which the amount of a priori information is drastically reduced, although at the expense of only obtaining limited information about the values of the constitutive parameters. This qualitative approach (the linear sampling method, the factorization method, the theory of transmission eigenvalues, etc.) is the theme of Inverse Scattering Theory and Transmission Eigenvalues.? The authors begin with a basic introduction to the theory, then proceed to more recent developments, including a detailed discussion of the transmission eigenvalue problem; present the new generalized linear sampling method in addition to the well-known linear sampling and factorization methods; and in order to achieve clarification of presentation, focus on the inverse scattering problem for scalar homogeneous media.?

Inverse scattering theory is a major theme of applied mathematics, and it has applications to such diverse areas as medical imaging, geophysical exploration, and nondestructive testing. The inverse scattering problem is both nonlinear and ill-posed, thus presenting particular problems in the development of efficient inversion algorithms. Although linearized models continue to play an important role in many applications, an increased need to focus on problems in which multiple scattering effects cannot be ignored has led to a central role for nonlinearity, and the possibility of collecting large amounts of data over limited regions of space means that the ill-posed nature of the inverse scattering problem has become a problem of central importance. Initial efforts to address the nonlinear and the ill-posed nature of the inverse scattering problem focused on nonlinear optimization methods. While efficient in many situations, strong a priori information is necessary for their implementation. This problem led to a qualitative approach to inverse scattering theory in which the amount of a priori information is drastically reduced, although at the expense of only obtaining limited information about the values of the constitutive parameters. This qualitative approach (the linear sampling method, the factorization method, the theory of transmission eigenvalues, etc.) is the theme of Inverse Scattering Theory and Transmission Eigenvalues. The authors begin with a basic introduction to the theory, then proceed to more recent developments, including a detailed discussion of the transmission eigenvalue problem; present the new generalized linear sampling method in addition to the well-known linear sampling and factorization methods; and in order to achieve clarification of presentation, focus on the inverse scattering problem for scalar homogeneous media.

It has now been almost ten years since our first book on scattering theory ap peared [32]. At that time we claimed that "in recent years the development of integral equation methods for the direct scattering problem seems to be nearing completion, whereas the use of such an approach to study the inverse scattering problem has progressed to an extent that a 'state of the art' survey appears highly desirable". Since we wrote these words, the inverse scattering problem for acoustic and electromagnetic waves has grown from being a few theoreti cal considerations with limited numerical implementations to a weH developed mathematical theory with tested numerical algorithms. This maturing of the field of inverse scattering theory has been based on the realization that such problems are in general not only nonlinear but also improperly posed in the sense that the solution does not depend continuously on the measured data. This was emphasized in [32] and treated with the ideas and tools available at that time. Now, almost ten years later, these initial ideas have developed to the extent that a monograph summarizing the mathematical basis of the field seems appropriate. This book is oUf attempt to write such a monograph. The inverse scattering problem for acoustic and electromagnetic waves can broadly be divided into two classes, the inverse obstacle problem and the inverse medium problem.

Inverse scattering theory is a major theme in applied mathematics, with applications to such diverse areas as medical imaging, geophysical exploration, and nondestructive testing. The inverse scattering problem is both nonlinear and ill-posed, thus presenting challenges in the development of efficient inversion algorithms. A further complication is that anisotropic materials cannot be uniquely determined from given scattering data. In the first edition of Inverse Scattering Theory and Transmission Eigenvalues, the authors discussed methods for determining the support of inhomogeneous media from measured far field data and the role of transmission eigenvalue problems in the mathematical development of these methods. In this second edition, three new chapters describe recent developments in inverse scattering theory. In particular, the authors explore the use of modified background media in the nondestructive testing of materials and methods for determining the modified transmission eigenvalues that arise in such applications from measured far field data. They also examine nonscattering wave numbers—a subset of transmission eigenvalues—using techniques taken from the theory of free boundary value problems for elliptic partial differential equations and discuss the dualism of scattering poles and transmission eigenvalues that has led to new methods for the numerical computation of scattering poles. This book will be of interest to research mathematicians and engineers and physicists working on problems in target identification. It will also be useful to advanced graduate students in many areas of applied mathematics.

Here is a clearly written introduction to three central areas of inverse problems: inverse problems in electromagnetic scattering theory, inverse spectral theory, and inverse problems in quantum scattering theory. Inverse problems, one of the most attractive parts of applied mathematics, attempt to obtain information about structures by nondestructive measurements. Based on a series of lectures presented by three of the authors, all experts in the field, the book provides a quick and easy way for readers to become familiar with the area through a survey of recent developments in inverse spectral and inverse scattering problems.

Inverse scattering theory is a major theme in applied mathematics, with applications to such diverse areas as medical imaging, geophysical exploration, and nondestructive testing. The inverse scattering problem is both nonlinear and ill-posed, thus presenting challenges in the development of efficient inversion algorithms. A further complication is that anisotropic materials cannot be uniquely determined from given scattering data. In the first edition of Inverse Scattering Theory and Transmission Eigenvalues, the authors discussed methods for determining the support of inhomogeneous media from measured far field data and the role of transmission eigenvalue problems in the mathematical development of these methods. In this second edition, three new chapters describe recent developments in inverse scattering theory. In particular, the authors explore the use of modified background media in the nondestructive testing of materials and methods for determining the modified transmission eigenvalues that arise in such applications from measured far field data. They also examine nonscattering wave numbers-a subset of transmission eigenvalues-using techniques taken from the theory of free boundary value problems for elliptic partial differential equations and discuss the dualism of scattering poles and transmission eigenvalues that has led to new methods for the numerical computation of scattering poles. This book will be of interest to research mathematicians and engineers and physicists working on problems in target identification. It will also be useful to advanced graduate students in many areas of applied mathematics.

This classic book provides a rigorous treatment of the Riesz?Fredholm theory of compact operators in dual systems, followed by a derivation of the jump relations and mapping properties of scalar and vector potentials in spaces of continuous and H?lder continuous functions. These results are then used to study scattering problems for the Helmholtz and Maxwell equations. Readers will benefit from a full discussion of the mapping properties of scalar and vector potentials in spaces of continuous and H?lder continuous functions, an in-depth treatment of the use of boundary integral equations to solve scattering problems for acoustic and electromagnetic waves, and an introduction to inverse scattering theory with an emphasis on the ill-posedness and nonlinearity of the inverse scattering problem.