Assessing the contributions of surface waves and complex rays to far-field Mie scattering by use of the Debye series

The contributions of complex rays and the secondary radiation shed by surface waves to scattering by a dielectric sphere are calculated in the context of the Debye-series expansion of the Mie scattering amplitudes. Also, the contributions of geometrical rays are reviewed and compared with those of the Debye series. Interference effects among surface waves, complex rays, and geometrical rays are calculated, and the possibility of observing these interference effects is discussed. Experimental data supporting the observation of a surface-wave–geometrical-ray-interference pattern are presented.