Characterization of interface reflection coefficients using a finite-difference injection technique

In this paper, a numerical wave field injection technique for characterizing the reflection coefficient of a planar medium interface is proposed. By injecting recorded wave field quantities into a three-dimensional (3D) finite-difference calculation, two key objectives are addressed: first, the recorded wave field is separated into its incident and reflected constituents without the need of spatial Fourier transforms or a temporal separation of incident and reflected parts in the recorded data. Second, the separated constituents are independently extrapolated to the location of the reflecting interface to determine its reflecting properties. The methodology is experimentally validated on 3D laboratory data consisting of reflections from the water-air interface in a water tank and is shown to give accurate results for incidence angles of up to 60°.