Focusing of acoustic fields in a randomly inhomogeneous waveguide by using the time reversal method

We perform theoretical analysis of the method of field focusing in a randomly inhomogeneous waveguide using reradiation of the received signal with time reversal. The simplest case where point sources and receivers are used for emission and reception is considered. As an example, the waveguide is chosen which simulates an underwater sound channel with refractive-index fluctuations caused by random internal waves. In underwater acoustics, the considered method of field focusing is usually applied at relatively short distances that are shorter than or about 10 km. This work deals with much longer paths, along which sound waves propagate under conditions of well-developed ray and wave chaos. Main attention is given to studying the width of the focal spot and the field amplitude at its center. It is shown that the amplitude distribution in the vertical section of the focal spot and the peak amplitude value at its center can be estimated analytically using the stochastic ray theory.