Background The study of terahertz (THz) wave propagation characteristics in severe meteorological environments such as rain, fog, and sand/dust has attracted significant attention. Sand and dust media have a significant impact on the transmission of terahertz waves.

Purpose This study aims to investigate the influence of sand and dust storms on the transmission characteristics of terahertz wave in order to provide key parameters for terahertz wireless communication channels in sand and dust storm environments.

Methods Mie theory and multiple scattering Monte Carlo method are applied to study the propagation characteristics of terahertz waves in the frequency range of 0.1～1 THz. The relationship between albedo, extinction coefficient, and attenuation rate with terahertz wave frequency and particle moisture content is given.

Results The results indicate that THz wave attenuation increases with the increase of moisture content and frequency, and the influence of single scattering on terahertz wave propagation differs from that of multiple scattering. The attenuation due to multiple scattering is less than that from single scattering under the same conditions. This difference in attenuation becomes more obvious as visibility decreases. The terahertz wave attenuation for different types of sand/dust storms is calculated based on the multiple-scattering Monte Carlo method. The results demonstrate that the proportion of larger particles in coastal sand/dust storms is high, resulting in the greatest attenuation of terahertz waves. The high proportion of small particle size in the Maowusu sand/dust storms, resulting in minimal attenuation.

Conclusions Terahertz waves have high frequencies, and multiple scattering methods are more suitable for attenuation effects in sand and dust storms.