Abstract
We present in this paper a numerical study of the validity limit of the optics geometrical approximation in comparison with a differential method which is established according to rigorous formalisms based on the electromagnetic theory. The precedent studies show that this method is adopted to the study of diffraction by periodic rough surfaces. For periods much larger than the wavelength, the mechanism is analog to what happens in a cavity where a ray is trapped and undergoes a large number of reflections. For gratings with a period much smaller than the wavelength, the roughness essentially behaves as a transition layer with a gradient of the optical index. Such a layer reduces the reflection there by increasing the absorption. The code has been implemented for TE polarization. We determine by the two methods such as differential method and the optics geometrical approximation the emissivity of gold and tungsten cylindrical surfaces with a sinusoidal profile, for a wavelength equal to 0.55 microns. The obtained results for a fixed height of the grating allowed us to delimit the validity domain of the optic geometrical approximation for the treated cases. The emissivity calculated by the differential method and that given on the basis of the homogenization theory are satisfactory when the period is much smaller than the wavelength.