Abstract: | A new analytical method is presented to study the problem of scattering of plane SH waves by a semi-cylindrical hill in an otherwise homogeneous, isotropic and elastic two-dimensional half-space, using the series of wave functions and a new expansion technique. The results obtained show that (1) the hill has quite considerable effects on ground motions for both the points on the hill and its environs, (2) these effects depend mainly on the frequency, the angle of wave incidence and the ratio of radius of hill to one-half the wave length of incident waves, and (3) prominent and depression topographies having equal form and radius for the same incident waves would cause quite different mechanisms of wave propagation in both response performance and magnitude. The results, doubtless, would be useful for further deepening knowledge of the effects of prominent topography on seismic ground motion and for testing the accuracy of various approximate methods so far available. |