The relationship between two- and three-dimensional elastic-wave propagation

abstract A technique similar to inverting Abel's equation is used to invert the descent of dimensions method between three-dimensional, cylindrically-symmetric and two-dimensional wave propagation. The end result is a very simple relationship between the two types of wave propagation. Apart from its intrinsic interest, the large number of two-dimensional studies reported in the literature could now be related to their three-dimensional counterparts.