Diffraction of a plane pulse by a three-dimensional corner.

The conical solutions for the incidence of a plane pulse on a three-dimensional corner are presented. The corner is represented by a trihedron with one edge perpendicular to the other two. Both the boundary condition of the first kind and that of the second kind are considered. Outside the characteristic sphere of the vertex of the corner, the solution is represented by the well-known conical solutions in two variables. Inside the characteristic sphere, the problem involves three conical variables. By the separation of variables, the problem is reduced to that of an eigenvalue problem with an irregular boundary which is in turn reduced to a system of homogeneous algebraic equations. The eigenvalues are then determined numerically. By the superposition of the conical solutions for plane pulses, the solution for the incidence of a plane wave is obtained. Numerical examples simulating the incidence of a sonic boom on the corner of a structure are presented.