Gaussian translation operator in a multilevel scheme

A multilevel computation scheme for time‐harmonic fields in three dimensions will be formulated with a new Gaussian translation operator that decays exponentially outside a circular cone centered on the line connecting the source and observation groups. This Gaussian translation operator is directional and diagonal with its sharpness determined by a beam parameter. When the beam parameter is set to zero, the Gaussian translation operator reduces to the standard fast multipole method translation operator. The directionality of the Gaussian translation operator makes it possible to reduce the number of plane waves required to achieve a given accuracy. The sampling rate can be determined straightforwardly to achieve any desired accuracy. The use of the computation scheme will be illustrated through a near‐field scanning problem where the far‐field pattern of a source is determined from near‐field measurements with a known probe. Here the Gaussian translation operator improves the condition number of the matrix equation that determines the far‐field pattern. The Gaussian translation operator can also be used when the probe pattern is known only in one hemisphere, as is common in practice. Also, the Gaussian translation operator will be used to solve the scattering problem of the perfectly conducting sphere. Key Points Gaussian translation operator can be used in near‐field scanning Gaussian translation operator reduces the number of required plane waves Probe pattern only required in one hemisphere