Inverse obstacle scattering with non-over-determined data

Abstract

It is proved that the scattering amplitude $A(\beta, \alpha_0, k_0)$, known for all $\beta\in S^2$, where $S^2$ is the unit sphere in $\mathbb{R}^3$, and fixed $\alpha_0\in S^2$ and $k_0>0$, determines uniquely the surface $S$ of the obstacle $D$ and the boundary condition on $S$. The boundary condition on $S$ is assumed to be the Dirichlet, or Neumann, or the impedance one. The uniqueness theorem for the solution of multidimensional inverse scattering problems with non-over-determined data was not known for many decades. A detailed proof of such a theorem is given in this paper for inverse scattering by obstacles for the first time. It follows from our results that the scattering solution vanishing on the boundary $S$ of the obstacle cannot have closed surfaces of zeros in the exterior of the obstacle different from $S$. To have a uniqueness theorem for inverse scattering problems with non-over-determined data is of principal interest because these are the minimal scattering data that allow one to uniquely recover the scatterer.