TECHNOLOGICAL UNIVERSITY OF THE PHILIPPINES

Taguig Campus
Electronics Engineering Department

RAdio Detection And Ranging

(RADAR)

Submitted by:
Group 2
Aguirre, Anzel Anne I.
Balderama, Jannica H.
Esclada, Rica I.
Jamilla, Joanna Grace F.

Submitted to:
Engr. Jefferson Rey J. Arroyo

Date
February 7, 2018
What is RADAR?
o RADAR is an acronym for Radio Detection And Ranging.
o RADAR is an object detection system that uses electromagnetic waves to
identify the range, altitude, direction or speed of both moving and fixed objects
such as aircrafts, ships, motor vehicles, weather formations and terrain.
o RADAR was developed secretly for military use by several nations in Period
before World War. A key development was the cavity magnetron in the UK
o Radar units usually work with very high frequencies.

Principle of Operation
o Reflection of electromagnetic waves
o Measurement of running time of transmitted pulses

Notes:
Radar measurement of range, or distance, is made possible because of
the properties of radiated electromagnetic energy.

1. Reflection of electromagnetic waves

The electromagnetic waves are reflected if they meet an electrically
leading surface. If these reflected waves are received again at the
place of their origin, then that means an obstacle is in the
propagation direction.

2. Electromagnetic energy travels through air at a constant speed, at

approximately the speed of light,
300,000 kilometers per second or
186,000 statute miles per second or
162,000 nautical miles per second.
This constant speed allows the determination of the distance
between the reflecting objects (airplanes, ships or cars) and the
radar site by measuring the running time of the transmitted pulses.

3. This energy normally travels through space in a straight line, and

will vary only slightly because of atmospheric and weather
conditions. By using of special radar antennas this energy can be
focused into a desired direction. Thus the direction (in azimuth and
elevation) of the reflecting objects can be measured.
 Advantages

Radar has many advantages compared to an attempt of visual

observation:

 Radar is able to operate day or night, in lightness or

darkness over a long range;
 Radar is able to operate in all weathers, in fog and rain, it
can even penetrate walls or layers of snow;
 Radar has very broad coverage; it is possible to observe the
whole hemisphere;
 Radar detects and tracks moving objects, a high resolution
imaging is possible, that results in an object recognition;
 Radar can operate unmanned, 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week.

Radar Basic Principles

o Transmitter
o Duplexer
o Receiver
o Radar Antenna
o Indicator

Notes:

Radar uses electromagnetic energy pulses in much the same way, as

shown in Figure 1. The radio-frequency (rf) energy is transmitted to and
reflected from the reflecting object. A small portion of the reflected energy
returns to the radar set. This returned energy is called an ECHO, just as it
is in sound terminology. Radar sets use the echo to determine the
direction and distance of the reflecting object.

The term RADAR is an acronym made up of the words:

RAdio (Aim) Detecting And Ranging

The term “RADAR” was officially coined as an acronym by U.S. Navy
Lieutenant Commander Samuel M. Tucker and F. R. Furth in November
1940. The acronym was by agreement adopted in 1943 by the Allied
powers of World War II and thereafter received general international
acceptance. [1]

It refers to electronic equipment that detects the presence of objects by

using reflected electromagnetic energy. Under some conditions a radar
system can measure the direction, height, distance, course and speed of
these objects. The frequency of electromagnetic energy used for radar is
unaffected by darkness and also penetrates fog and clouds. This permits
radar systems to determine the position of airplanes, ships, or other
obstacles that are invisible to the naked eye because of distance,
darkness, or weather.

Modern radar can extract widely more information from a target's echo
signal than its range. But the calculating of the range by measuring the
delay time is one of its most important functions.

Basic design of a radar system

The following figure shows the operating principle of a primary radar set.
The radar antenna illuminates the target with a microwave signal, which is
then reflected and picked up by a receiving device. The electrical signal
picked up by the receiving antenna is called echo or return. The radar
signal is generated by a powerful transmitter and received by a highly
sensitive receiver.

All targets produce a diffuse reflection i.e. it is reflected in a wide number

of directions. The reflected signal is also called scattering. Backscatter is
the term given to reflections in the opposite direction to the incident rays.

Radar signals can be displayed on the traditional plan position indicator

(PPI) or other more advanced radar display systems. A PPI has a rotating
vector with the radar at the origin, which indicates the pointing direction of
the antenna and hence the bearing of targets.

 Transmitter
The radar transmitter produces the short duration high-power rf pulses of
energy that are into space by the antenna.
 Duplexer
The duplexer alternately switches the antenna between the transmitter
and receiver so that only one antenna need be used. This switching is
necessary because the high-power pulses of the transmitter would destroy
the receiver if energy were allowed to enter the receiver.
  Receiver
The receivers amplify and demodulate the received RF-signals. The
receiver provides video signals on the output.
 Radar Antenna
The Antenna transfers the transmitter energy to signals in space with the
required distribution and efficiency. This process is applied in an identical
way on reception.
 Indicator
The indicator should present to the observer a continuous, easily
understandable, graphic picture of the relative position of radar targets.
The radar screen (in this case a PPI-scope) displays the produced from
the echo signals bright blibs. The longer the pulses were delayed by the
runtime, the further away from the center of this radar scope they are
displayed. The direction of the deflection on this screen is that in which the
antenna is currently pointing.

Principle of Measurement
1. Distance Determination.
2. Direction Determination.
3. Elevation Angle.
4. Range Resolution.

Distance Determination
o The distance is determined from the running time of the high frequency
transmitted signal and the propagation c0.
o The actual range of a target from the radar is known as slant range. Slant range
is the line of sight distance between the radar and the object illuminated. Since
the waves travel to a target and back, the round trip time is dividing by two in
order to obtain the time the wave took to reach the target.
Therefore the following formula arises for the slant range:
R = (c0· t)/2 where: c0 = speed of light = 3·108 m/s
t = measured running time [s]
R = slant range antenna - aim [m]
o The distances are expressed in kilometers or nautical miles (1 NM = 1.852 km).
 Notes:

The radar transmits a short radio pulse with very high pulse power. This
pulse is focused in one direction only by the directivity of the antenna, and
propagates in this given direction with the speed of light.

If in this direction is an obstacle, for example an airplane, then a part of

the energy of the pulse is scattered in all directions. A very small portion is
also reflected back to the radar. The radar antenna receives this energy
and the radar evaluates the contained information.

The distance we can measure with a simple oscilloscope. On the

oscilloscope moves synchronously with the transmitted pulse a luminous
point and leaves a trail. The deflection starts with the transmitter pulse.
The luminescent spot moves to scale on the oscilloscope with the radio
wave. At this moment, in which the antenna receives the echo pulse, this
pulse is also shown on the oscilloscope. The distance between the two
shown pulses on the oscilloscope is a measure of the distance of the
aircraft.

Direction Determination
o The angular determination of the target is determined by the directivity of the
antenna.
o Directivity, sometimes known as the directive gain, is the ability of the antenna to
concentrate the transmitted energy in a particular direction.
o By measuring the direction in which the antenna is pointing when the echo is
received, both the azimuth and elevation angles from the radar to the object or
target can be determined.
o The True Bearing (referenced to true north) of a radar target is the angle
between true north and a line pointed directly at the target. This angle is
measured in the horizontal plane and in a clockwise direction from true north.
 Notes:

The accuracy of angular measurement is determined by the directivity,

which is a function of the size of the antenna.

Radar units usually work with very high frequencies. Reasons for this are:

 quasi-optically propagation of these waves.

 High resolution (the smaller the wavelength, the smaller the objects
the radar is able to detect).
 Higher the frequency, smaller the antenna size at the same gain.

o The antennas of most radar systems are designed to radiate energy in a one-
directional lobe or beam that can be moved in bearing simply by moving the
antenna.
o The point of maximum echo, determined by the detection circuitry or visually by
the operator, is when the beam points direct at the target.
o Weapons-control and guidance radar systems are positioned to the point of
maximum signal return and maintained at that position either manually or by
automatic tracking circuits.

Notes:

As you can see in the Figure , the shape of the beam is such that the echo
signal strength varies in amplitude as the antenna beam moves across the
target. In actual practice, search radar antennas move continuously

In order to have an exact determination of the bearing angle, a survey of

the north direction is necessary. Therefore, older radar sets must
expensively be surveyed either with a compass or with help of known
trigonometrically points. More modern radar sets take on this task and with
help of the GPS satellites determine the north direction independently.

Elevation Angle
o Altitude or height-finding search radars use a very narrow beam in the vertical
plane. The beam is mechanically or electronically scanned in elevation to
pinpoint targets.
 o The elevation angle is the angle between the horizontal plane and the line of
sight, measured in the vertical plane. The Greek letter Epsilon (ε) describes the
elevation angle. The elevation angle is positive above the horizon (0° elevation
angle), but negative below the horizon.

Range Resolution
o Range resolution is the ability of a radar system to distinguish between two
or more targets on the same bearing but at different ranges. The degree of
range resolution depends on the width of the transmitted pulse, the types and
sizes of targets, and the efficiency of the receiver and indicator. Pulse width is
the primary factor in range resolution. A well-designed radar system, with all
other factors at maximum efficiency, should be able to distinguish targets
separated by one-half the pulse width time τ.
o Therefore, the theoretical range resolution cell of a radar system can be
calculated from the following equation:
Sr ≥ (c0 · τ)/ 2 where: c0 = speed of light = 3·108 m/s
τ = pulse width time
 Notes:

The target resolution of a radar is its ability to distinguish between targets

that are very close in either range or bearing. Weapons-control radar,
which requires great precision, should be able to distinguish between
targets that are only yards apart. Search radar is usually less precise and
only distinguishes between targets that are hundreds of yards or even
miles apart. Resolution is usually divided into two categories; range
resolution and bearing resolution.

Range resolution is the ability of a radar system to distinguish between

two or more targets on the same bearing but at different ranges. The
degree of range resolution depends on the width of the transmitted pulse,
the types and sizes of targets, and the efficiency of the receiver and
indicator. Pulse width is the primary factor in range resolution. A well-
designed radar system, with all other factors at maximum efficiency,
should be able to distinguish targets separated by one-half the pulse width
time τ.

Radar Timing
1. Pulse Repetition Frequency.
2. Duty Cycle.
3. Dwell Time.

Pulse Repetition Frequency

o The Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) of the radar system is the number of
pulses that are transmitted per second.
o Radar systems radiate each pulse at the carrier frequency during transmit time
(or Pulse Width PW), wait for returning echoes during listening or rest time, and
then radiate the next pulse..The time between the beginning of one pulse and the
start of the next pulse is called pulse-repetition time (prt) and is equal to the
reciprocal of prf as follows: PRT = 1/PRF

Notes:
The Pulse Repetition Frequency (PRF) of the radar system is the number
of pulses that are transmitted per second.

Radar systems radiate each pulse at the carrier frequency during transmit
time (or Pulse Width PW), wait for returning echoes during listening or rest
time, and then radiate the next pulse, as shown in the figure. The time
between the beginning of one pulse and the start of the next pulse is
called pulse-repetition time (PRT) and is equal to the reciprocal of PRF as
follows:

1
PRT = (1)
PRF

Receiving Time

Generally, the receiving time is the time between the transmitters pulses.
The receiving time is always smaller than the difference between the pulse
repetition period and the length of the transmitters pulse. It is sometimes
also limited by a so-called dead time, in which the receiver is already
switched off just before the next transmitting pulse.

In some radars between the transmitting pulse and the receiving time
there is a short recovery time of the duplexer. This recovery time occurs
when the duplexer must switch off the receiver response to the high
transmitting power. At very low transmitting power, however, can already
be received during the transmit pulse also. The receiving time includes the
transmission time then.

Dead Time

If the receiving time ends before the next transmitting pulse, the result is a
dead time. During the dead time are carried out system test loops in
modern radars generally. Radars that use a phased-array antenna,
urgently need such a dead time. For within this time, the phase shifters of
the antenna must be reprogrammed to prepare the antenna for the next
direction of the antennas beam. This can take up to 200 microseconds,
why then the dead time takes quite large values compared with the
receive time.

In this dead time the receiver is already switched off because during the
reprogramming the antenna can not provide received signals. Because
during this time, no real data can be processed in any case, this time is
used to perform internal testing procedures in the modules of the receive
path. This is done in order to verify the operational readiness of certain
electronic circuits, and to adjust them, if necessary. For this purpose
 signals are generated with known size. These signals are fed into the
receive paths and their processing in the individual modules is monitored.
However, the video processor switches off these pulses, so that they do
not appear on the screen. If necessary as a result of the tests the modules
can be automatically reconfigured and it can be written a detailed error
message.

Burst-Mode

The distribution of the dead time does not have to be uniform. It can be
also be transmitted a number of pulses in rapid succession one after the
other with each a short receive time, before dead time appears. For
example, if several pulse periods are orientated in the same direction (as
like necessary for pulse pair processing and moving target detection), then
a dead time is not needed. This has advantages for the time budget of the
radar. A random unwanted change in phase angle of the generator is not
likely after a shorter time. Therefore, the radar will be more accurate in the
distance measurement. Simultaneously, the pulse repetition frequency
changes in this short period of time: it is very higher than the average. The
higher the pulse repetition frequency, the better is the unambiguous
measurement of the velocity (see Doppler ambiguity).

The burst mode is mostly used in didactical radars. These radars do not
require large receiving time for the extremely short distances within a
training room. However, they require a longer dead time to transfer the
data of the echo signals over a relatively narrow-band serial cable to the
computer. For example, they transmit 10 pulses per second only, which
corresponds to an average pulse repetition frequency of 10 Hz. These
10 pulses are transmitted but within 200 microseconds. For the calculation
of an unambiguous Doppler frequency that corresponds to a pulse
repetition frequency of 50 kHz. The dead time which follows is almost a
full second. During this time the data are transferred via USB using a
sampling rate of up to 280 Mbit/s

Duty Cycle
o The product of pulse width (pw) and pulse-repetition frequency (prf) is called the
duty cycle of a radar system.
o Duty cycle is the fraction of time that a system is in an “active” state. In particular,
it is used in the following contexts: Duty cycle is the proportion of time during
which a component, device, or system is operated.
Notes:

Peak- and Average Power

The energy content of a continuous-wave radar transmission may be

easily figured because the transmitter operates continuously. However,
pulsed radar transmitters are switched on and off to provide range timing
information with each pulse. The amount of energy in this waveform is
important because maximum range is directly related to transmitter output
power. The more energy the radar system transmits, the greater the target
detection range will be. The energy content of the pulse is equal to the
peak (maximum) power level of the pulse multiplied by the pulse width.
However, meters used to measure power in a radar system do so over a
period of time that is longer than the pulse width. For this reason, pulse-
repetition time is included in the power calculations for transmitters. Power
measured over such a period of time is referred to as average power.

Peak power must be calculated more often than average power. This is
because most measurement instruments measure average power directly.
Transposing the upper equation gives us a common way for calculating
peak power/average power.

Since the storage of the energy in the modulator, the power supply must
make plant for the transmitter available a little more than the average
power only.

Duty cycle

The product of pulse width (pw) and pulse-repetition frequency (prf) in the
above formula is called the duty cycle of a radar system. Duty cycle is the
fraction of time that a system is in an “active” state. In particular, it is used
in the following contexts: Duty cycle is the proportion of time during which
a component, device, or system is operated. Suppose a transmitter
operates for 1 microsecond, and is shut off for 99 microseconds, then is
run for 1 microsecond again, and so on. The transmitter runs for one out
 of 100 microseconds, or 1/100 of the time, and its duty cycle is therefore
1/100, or 1 percent. The duty cycle is used to calculate both the peak
power and average power of a radar system.

Dwell Time
o The time that an antenna beam spends on a target is called dwell time TD.
o The dwell time of a 2D–search radar depends predominantly on:
1) the antennas horizontally beam width ΘAZ and
2) the turn speed n of the antenna (rotations per minute).
o The dwell time can be calculated using the following equation:
TD = (ΘAZ · 60)/(360° · n); in [seconds]

Notes:
Dwell Time and Hits per Scan

Most processes in pulsed radar are time dependent. Thus, some terms
like Dwell Time and Hits per Scan have been established to describe this
time-dependence.

Dwell Time

The time that an antenna beam spends on a target is called dwell time TD.
The dwell time of a 2D–search radar depends predominantly on

 the antennas horizontally beam width ΘAZ and

 the speed of rotation n of the antenna (rotations per minute).

The dwell time can be calculated using the following equation:

ΘAZ · 60
TD ; in
(1)
= [seconds]
360° · n

Hits per Scan

The value of hits per scan m says how many echo signals per single
target during every antenna rotation are received. The hit number stands
 e.g. for a search radar with a rotating antenna for the number of the
received echo pulses of a single target per antenna turn. The dwell time
TD and the pulse repetition time PRT determine the value of hits per scan.

In order to evaluate the target position in radar systems with sufficient

accuracy, hit numbers from 1 to 20 are necessary (depending on the
working principle of the radar system). The greater the number of hits per
scan, the more accurate will be the angle measurement and the better the
MTI performance.

For analogue displays, the size and brightness of the target character on
the screen is also determined by how many hits per scan the target has
received. A measurement of the accurate azimuth of the target is still
defined herein in the center of the blip on the screen. (The distance is
measured at the front edge of this blip.)

Many radares use pulse integration in the radar signal processing to

distinguish the target signals from noise and interference pulses. If the
number of hits per scan is too small, this target can be suppressed by the
increased threshold values because of these disturbances.

In the case of a digital plotextractor, which uses the method of sliding

window to determine the azimuth, a predetermined number of hits per
scan must also be achieved. A radar with a monopulse antenna requires
only one pulse for the accurate azimuth measurement. However,
monopulse radars also often require two, three, or more pulses for moving
target indication.

Radar Equation
The power Pr returning to the receiving antenna is given by the radar equation:

Where:
Pt = transmitter power
Gt = gain of the transmitting antenna
Ar = effective aperture (area) of the receiving antenna
σ = radar cross section, or scattering coefficient of the target
F = pattern propagation factor
Rt = distance from the transmitter to the target
Rr = distance from the target to the receiver
 Notes:

This shows that the received power declines as the fourth power of the
range, which means that the received power from distant targets is
relatively very small.

Additional filtering and pulse integration modifies the radar equation

slightly for pulse-Doppler radar performance, which can be used to
increase detection range and reduce transmit power.

The equation above with F = 1 is a simplification for transmission in a

vacuum without interference. The propagation factor accounts for the
effects of multipath and shadowing and depends on the details of the
environment. In a real-world situation, pathloss effects should also be
considered.

Radar Cross Section

o The size and ability of a target to reflect radar energy can be summarized into a
single term, σ, known as the radar cross-section, which has units of m².
o If absolutely all of the incident radar energy on the target were reflected equally
in all directions, then the radar cross section would be equal to the target's cross-
sectional area as seen by the transmitter.
o In practice, some energy is absorbed and the reflected energy is not distributed
equally in all directions.
o Therefore, the radar cross-section is quite difficult to estimate and is normally
determined by measurement.

The target radar cross sectional area depends on:

1) The airplane’s physical geometry and exterior features,
2) The direction of the illuminating radar,
3) The radar transmitters frequency,
4) The used material types.

Notes:
 Radar Cross Section

The size and ability of a target to reflect radar energy can be summarized
into a single term, σ, known as the radar cross-section, which has units of
m². This unit shows, that the radar cross section is an area. If absolutely
all of the incident radar energy on the target were reflected equally in all
directions, then the radar cross section would be equal to the target's
cross-sectional area as seen by the transmitter. In practice, some energy
is absorbed and the reflected energy is not distributed equally in all
directions. Therefore, the radar cross-section is quite difficult to estimate
and is normally determined by measurement.

The target radar cross sectional area depends of:

 the airplane’s physical geometry and exterior features,

 the direction of the illuminating radar,
 the radar transmitters frequency,
 the used material types.

The use of stealth technology to reduce radar cross section increases the
survivability and decreases the target detection of military aircraft. But the
stealth technology depends of the used radar transmitters frequency and
has none effect against VHF- radars like P–12 or P-18, both used by
serbian air defense units during the Kosovo war.

Calculation of the radar cross section

Radar cross section (RCS) is the measure of a target's ability to reflect

radar signals in the direction of the radar receiver, i.e. it is a measure of
the ratio of backscatter density in the direction of the radar (from the
target) to the power density that is intercepted by the target. Since the
power is distributed on the shape of a sphere, a small part of this
((4·π·r2)) can be received by the radar.
Radar cross section σ is as defined as:

The RCS of a target can be viewed as a comparison of the strength of the

reflected signal from a target to the reflected signal from a perfectly
smooth sphere of cross sectional area of 1 m².

The following backscattering formulas from shapes occurs in an optical

independent of frequency region.

Radar Frequency Bands

Notes:
Waves and Frequency Ranges

The spectrum of the electric magnetic waves shows frequencies up to

1024 Hz. This very large complete range is subdivided because of
different physical qualities in different subranges.

The division of the frequencies to the different ranges was competed on

criteria formerly, which arose historically and a new division of the
wavebands which is used internationally is out-dated and arose so in the
meantime. The traditional waveband name is partly still used in the
literature, however.

An overview shows the following figure:

Since without that the correct frequency is known, a transformation isn't

always possible into the new wavebands. Often in the manufacturers
documents are published the traditional wavebands. So I take on and
commentn't these informations.

Radar systems work in a wide band of transmitted frequencies. The higher

the frequency of a radar system, the more it is affected by weather
conditions such as rain or clouds. But the higher the transmitted
frequency, the better is the accuracy of the radar system.
The figure shows the frequency bands used by e.g. radarsystems.

A- and B- Band (HF- und VHF- Radar)

These radar bands below 300 MHz have a long historically tradition
because these frequencies represented the frontier of radio technology at
the time during the World War II. Today these frequencies are used for
early warning radars and so called Over The Horizon (OTH) Radars.
Using these lower frequencies it is easier to obtain high-power
transmitters. The attenuation of the electro-magnetic waves is lower than
using higher frequencies. On the other hand the accuracy is limited,
because a lower frequency requires antennas with very large physical size
which determines angle accuracy and angle resolution. These frequency-
bands are used by other communications and broadcasting services too,
therefore the bandwidth of the radar is limited (at the expense of accuracy
and resolution again).

These frequency bands are currently experiencing a comeback, while the

actually used Stealth technologies don't have the desired effect at
extremely low frequencies.

C- Band (UHF- Radar)

There are some specialized Radar sets developed for this frequency band
(300 MHz to1 GHz). It is a good frequency for the operation of radars for
the detection and tracking of satellites and ballistic missiles over a long
range. These radars operate for early warning and target acquisition like
the surveillance radar for the Medium Extended Air Defense System
(MEADS). Some weather radar-applications e.g. wind profilers work with
these frequencies because the electromagnetic waves are very low
affected by clouds and rain.

The new technology of Ultrawideband (UWB) Radars uses all frequencies

from A- to C-Band. UWB- radars transmit very low pulses in all
frequencies simultaneously. They are used for technically material
examination and as Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR) for archaeological
explorations.

D- Band (L-Band Radar)

This frequency band (1 to 2 GHz) is preferred for the operation of long-

range air-surveillance radars out to 250 NM (≈400 km). They transmit
pulses with high power, broad bandwidth and an intrapulse modulation
often. Due to the curvature of the earth the achievable maximum range is
limited for targets flying with low altitude. These objects disappear very
fast behind the radar horizon.
In Air Traffic Management (ATM) long-range surveillance radars like the
Air Route Surveillance Radar (ARSR) works in this frequency band.
Coupled with a Monopulse Secondary Surveillance Radar (MSSR) they
use a relatively large, but slower rotating antenna. The designator L-Band
is good as mnemonic rhyme as large antenna or long range.

E/F-Band (S-Band Radar)

The atmospheric attenuation is higher than in D-Band. Radar sets need a

considerably higher transmitting power than in lower frequency ranges to
achieve a good maximum range. As example given the Medium Power
Radar (MPR) with a pulse power of up to 20 MW. In this frequency range
the influence of weather conditions is higher than in D-band. Therefore a
couple of weather radars work in E/F-Band, but more in subtropic and
tropic climatic conditions, because here the radar can see beyond a
severe storm.

Special Airport Surveillance Radars (ASR) are used at airports to detect

and display the position of aircraft in the terminal area with a medium
range up to 50…60 NM (≈100 km). An ASR detects aircraft position and
weather conditions in the vicinity of civilian and military airfields. The
designator S-Band (contrary to L-Band) is good as mnemonic rhyme as
smaller antenna or shorter range.

G- Band (C-Band Radar)

In G- Band there are many mobile military battlefield surveillance, missile-

control and ground surveillance radar sets with short or medium range.
The size of the antennas provides an excellent accuracy and resolution,
but the relatively small-sized antennas don't bother a fast relocation. The
influence of bad weather conditions is very high. Therefore air-surveillance
radars use an antenna feed with circular polarization often. This frequency
band is predetermined for most types of weather radar used to locate
precipitation in temperate zone like Europe.

I/J- Band (X- and Ku- Band Radars)

In this frequency-band (8 to 12 GHz) the relationship between used wave

length and size of the antenna is considerably better than in lower
frequency-bands. The I/J- Band is a relatively popular radar band for
military applications like airborne radars for performing the roles of
interceptor, fighter, and attack of enemy fighters and of ground targets. A
very small antenna size provides a good performance. Missile guidance
systems at I/J- band are of a convenient size and are, therefore, of interest
for applications where mobility and light weight are important and very
long range is not a major requirement.
 This frequency band is wide used for maritime civil and military navigation
radars. Very small and cheap antennas with a high rotation speed are
adequate for a fair maximum range and a good accuracy. Slotted
waveguide and small patch antennas are used as radar antenna, under a
protective radome mostly.

This frequency band is also popular for spaceborne or airborne imaging

radars based on Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) both for military
electronic intelligence and civil geographic mapping. A special Inverse
Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) is in use as a maritime airborne
instrument of pollution control.

K- Band (K- and Ka- Band Radars)

The higher the frequency, the higher is the atmospheric absorption and
attenuation of the waves. Otherwise the achievable accuracy and the
range resolution rise too. Radar applications in this frequency band
provide short range, very high resolution and high data renewing rate. In
ATM these radar sets are called Surface Movement Radar (SMR) or (as p.
o.) Airport Surface Detection Equipment (ASDE). Using of very short
transmitting pulses of a few nanoseconds affords a range resolution, that
outline of the aircraft can be seen on the radars display.

V-Band

By the molecular dispersion (here this is the influence of the air humidity),
this frequency band stay for a high attenuation. Radar applications are
limited for a short range of a couple of meters here.

W-Band

Here are two phenomena visible: a maximum of attenuation at about

75 GHz and a relative minimum at about 96 GHz. Both frequency ranges
are in use practically. In automotive engineering small built in radar sets
operate at 75…76 GHz for parking assistants, blind spot and brake
assists. The high attenuation (here the influence of the oxygen molecules
O2) enhances the immunity to interference of these radar sets.

There are radar sets operating at 96 to 98 GHz as laboratory equipments

yet. These applications give a preview for a use of radar in extremely
higher frequencies as 100 GHz.

Interference
1. Noise
2. Clutter
3. Jamming
Noise
o Signal noise is an internal source of random variations in the signal, which is
generated by all electronic components.
o The lower the power of the desired signal, the more difficult it is to discern.
o Noise figure is a measure of the noise produced by a receiver compared to an
ideal receiver.
o Noise is also generated by external sources.
o There will be also flicker noise due to electrons transit, but depending on 1/f, will
be much lower than thermal noise when the frequency is high.

Notes:

Signal noise is an internal source of random variations in the signal, which

is generated by all electronic components.

Reflected signals decline rapidly as distance increases, so noise

introduces a radar range limitation. The noise floor and signal to noise ratio
are two different measures of performance that affect range performance.
Reflectors that are too far away produce too little signal to exceed the
noise floor and cannot be detected. Detection requires a signal that
exceeds the noise floor by at least the signal to noise ratio.

Noise typically appears as random variations superimposed on the

desired echo signal received in the radar receiver. The lower the power of
the desired signal, the more difficult it is to discern it from the noise. Noise
figure is a measure of the noise produced by a receiver compared to an
ideal receiver, and this needs to be minimized.

Shot noise is produced by electrons in transit across a discontinuity, which

occurs in all detectors. Shot noise is the dominant source in most
receivers. There will also be flicker noise caused by electron transit through
amplification devices, which is reduced using heterodyne amplification.
Another reason for heterodyne processing is that for fixed fractional
bandwidth, the instantaneous bandwidth increases linearly in frequency.
This allows improved range resolution. The one notable exception to
heterodyne (downconversion) radar systems is ultra-wideband radar. Here
a single cycle, or transient wave, is used similar to UWB communications,
see List of UWB channels.

Noise is also generated by external sources, most importantly the natural

thermal radiation of the background surrounding the target of interest. In
modern radar systems, the internal noise is typically about equal to or
lower than the external noise. An exception is if the radar is aimed
upwards at clear sky, where the scene is so "cold" that it generates very
little thermal noise. The thermal noise is given by kB T B, where T is
 temperature, B is bandwidth (post matched filter) and kB is Boltzmann's
constant. There is an appealing intuitive interpretation of this relationship in
a radar. Matched filtering allows the entire energy received from a target
to be compressed into a single bin (be it a range, Doppler, elevation, or
azimuth bin). On the surface it would appear that then within a fixed
interval of time one could obtain perfect, error free, detection. To do this
one simply compresses all energy into an infinitesimal time slice. What
limits this approach in the real world is that, while time is arbitrarily
divisible, current is not. The quantum of electrical energy is an electron,
and so the best one can do is match filter all energy into a single electron.
Since the electron is moving at a certain temperature (Plank spectrum)
this noise source cannot be further eroded. We see then that radar, like all
macro-scale entities, is profoundly impacted by quantum theory.

Noise is random and target signals are not. Signal processing can take
advantage of this phenomenon to reduce the noise floor using two
strategies. The kind of signal integration used with moving target indication

can improve noise up to 2 {\displaystyle {\sqrt {2}}} for each stage.

The signal can also be split among multiple filters for pulse-Doppler signal
processing, which reduces the noise floor by the number of filters. These
improvements depend upon coherence.

Clutter
o Clutter refers to radio frequency (RF) echoes returned from targets which are
uninteresting to the radar operators.
o Targets include natural objects, man-made objects
o It may also originate from multipath echoes

The basic types of clutter can be summarized as follows:

1) Surface Clutter – Ground or sea returns are typical surface clutter. Returns
from geographical land masses are generally stationary, however, the effect of wind on
trees etc. means that the target can introduce a Doppler Shift to the radar return. This
Doppler shift is an important method of removing unwanted signals in the signal
processing part of a radar system. Clutter returned from the sea generally also has
movement associated with the waves.
2) Volume Clutter – Weather or chaff are typical volume clutter. In the air, the
most significant problem is weather clutter. This can be produced from rain or snow
and can have a significant Doppler content.
 3) Point Clutter – Birds, windmills and individual tall buildings are typical point
clutter and are not extended in nature. Moving point clutter is sometimes described
as angels. Birds and insects produce clutter, which can be very difficult to remove
because the characteristics are very much like aircraft.

Seen from PPI (Plan Position Indicator) Scope

Notes:

Clutter refers to radio frequency (RF) echoes returned from targets which
are uninteresting to the radar operators. Such targets include natural
objects such as ground, sea, and when not being tasked for
meteorological purposes, precipitation (such as rain, snow or hail), sand
storms, animals (especially birds), atmospheric turbulence, and other
atmospheric effects, such as ionosphere reflections, meteor trails, and
Hail spike. Clutter may also be returned from man-made objects such as
buildings and, intentionally, by radar countermeasures such as chaff.

Some clutter may also be caused by a long radar waveguide between the
radar transceiver and the antenna. In a typical plan position indicator (PPI)
radar with a rotating antenna, this will usually be seen as a "sun" or
"sunburst" in the centre of the display as the receiver responds to echoes
from dust particles and misguided RF in the waveguide. Adjusting the
timing between when the transmitter sends a pulse and when the receiver
stage is enabled will generally reduce the sunburst without affecting the
accuracy of the range, since most sunburst is caused by a diffused
transmit pulse reflected before it leaves the antenna. Clutter is considered
a passive interference source, since it only appears in response to radar
signals sent by the radar.

Clutter is detected and neutralized in several ways. Clutter tends to

appear static between radar scans; on subsequent scan echoes, desirable
targets will appear to move, and all stationary echoes can be eliminated.
Sea clutter can be reduced by using horizontal polarization, while rain is
reduced with circular polarization (meteorological radars wish for the
opposite effect, and therefore use linear polarization to detect
precipitation). Other methods attempt to increase the signal-to-clutter ratio.

Clutter moves with the wind or is stationary. Two common strategies to

improve measure or performance in a clutter environment are:

 Moving target indication, which integrates successive pulses and

 Doppler processing, which uses filters to separate clutter from
desirable signals.

The most effective clutter reduction technique is pulse-Doppler radar.

Doppler separates clutter from aircraft and spacecraft using a frequency
spectrum, so individual signals can be separated from multiple reflectors
located in the same volume using velocity differences. This requires a
coherent transmitter. Another technique uses a moving target indicator
that subtracts the receive signal from two successive pulses using phase
to reduce signals from slow moving objects. This can be adapted for
systems that lack a coherent transmitter, such as time-domain pulse-
amplitude radar.

Constant false alarm rate, a form of automatic gain control (AGC), is a

method that relies on clutter returns far outnumbering echoes from targets
of interest. The receiver's gain is automatically adjusted to maintain a
constant level of overall visible clutter. While this does not help detect
targets masked by stronger surrounding clutter, it does help to distinguish
strong target sources. In the past, radar AGC was electronically controlled
and affected the gain of the entire radar receiver. As radars evolved, AGC
became computer-software controlled and affected the gain with greater
granularity in specific detection cells.

Clutter may also originate from multipath echoes from valid targets caused
by ground reflection, atmospheric ducting or ionospheric
reflection/refraction (e.g., anomalous propagation). This clutter type is
especially bothersome since it appears to move and behave like other
normal (point) targets of interest. In a typical scenario, an aircraft echo is
reflected from the ground below, appearing to the receiver as an identical
target below the correct one. The radar may try to unify the targets,
reporting the target at an incorrect height, or eliminating it on the basis of
jitter or a physical impossibility. Terrain bounce jamming exploits this
response by amplifying the radar signal and directing it downward. These
problems can be overcome by incorporating a ground map of the radar's
surroundings and eliminating all echoes which appear to originate below
ground or above a certain height. Monopulse can be improved by altering
the elevation algorithm used at low elevation. In newer air traffic control
radar equipment, algorithms are used to identify the false targets by
 comparing the current pulse returns to those adjacent, as well as
calculating return improbabilities.

Doppler Effect
In radar technology the Doppler Effect is using for two tasks:
1) Speed measuring
2) MTI - Moving Target Indication

Notes:

Frequency shift is caused by motion that changes the number of

wavelengths between the reflector and the radar. This can degrade or
enhance radar performance depending upon how it affects the detection
process. As an example, Moving Target Indication can interact with Doppler
to produce signal cancellation at certain radial velocities, which degrades
performance.

Sea-based radar systems, semi-active radar homing, active radar homing,

weather radar, military aircraft, and radar astronomy rely on the Doppler
effect to enhance performance. This produces information about target
velocity during the detection process. This also allows small objects to be
 detected in an environment containing much larger nearby slow moving
objects.

Doppler shift depends upon whether the radar configuration is active or

passive. Active radar transmits a signal that is reflected back to the
receiver. Passive radar depends upon the object sending a signal to the
receiver.

Jamming
o Radar jamming refers to radio frequency signals originating from sources outside
the radar, transmitting in the radar's frequency and thereby masking targets of
interest.
o It is It may be intentional or unintentional that transmits using the same
frequency range.
o considered an active interference source
Notes:

Radar jamming refers to radio frequency signals originating from sources

outside the radar, transmitting in the radar's frequency and thereby
masking targets of interest. Jamming may be intentional, as with an
electronic warfare tactic, or unintentional, as with friendly forces operating
equipment that transmits using the same frequency range. Jamming is
considered an active interference source, since it is initiated by elements
outside the radar and in general unrelated to the radar signals.

Jamming is problematic to radar since the jamming signal only needs to

travel one way (from the jammer to the radar receiver) whereas the radar
echoes travel two ways (radar-target-radar) and are therefore significantly
reduced in power by the time they return to the radar receiver. Jammers
therefore can be much less powerful than their jammed radars and still
effectively mask targets along the line of sight from the jammer to the
radar (mainlobe jamming). Jammers have an added effect of affecting
radars along other lines of sight through the radar receiver's sidelobes
(sidelobe jamming).

Mainlobe jamming can generally only be reduced by narrowing the

mainlobe solid angle and cannot fully be eliminated when directly facing a
jammer which uses the same frequency and polarization as the radar.
Sidelobe jamming can be overcome by reducing receiving sidelobes in the
radar antenna design and by using an omnidirectional antenna to detect
and disregard non-mainlobe signals. Other anti-jamming techniques are
frequency hopping and polarization.
Classifications of RADAR systems (technologies)

Notes:
Imaging Radar / Non-Imaging Radar

An Imaging Radar forms a picture of the observed object or area. Imaging

radars have been used to map the Earth, other planets, asteroids, other
celestial objects and to categorize targets for military systems.

Typically implementations of a Non-Imaging Radar system are speed

gauges and radar altimeters. These are also called scatterometers since
they measure the scattering properties of the object or region being
observed. Non-Imaging Secondary Radar applications are immobilizer
systems in some recent private cars.

Primary Radar

A Primary Radar transmits high-frequency signals which are reflected at

targets. The arisen echoes are received and evaluated. This means,
unlike secondary radar sets a primary radar set receive it's own emitted
signals as an echo again.

Secondary Radar

At these radar sets the airplane must have a transponder (transmitting

responder) on board and this transponder responds to interrogation by
transmitting a coded reply signal. This response can contain much more
information, than a primary radar set is able to acquire (E.g. an altitude, an
identification code or also any technical problems on board such as a
radiocontact loss ...).
Pulsed Radars

Pulse radar sets transmit a high-frequency impulse signal of high power.

After this impulse signal, a longer break follows in which the echoes can
be received, before a new transmitted signal is sent out. Direction,
distance and sometimes if necessary the height or altitude of the target
can be determined from the measured antenna position and propagation
time of the pulse-signal.

Continuous- Wave Radar

CW radar sets transmit a high-frequency signal continuously. The echo

signal is received and processed. The receiver need not to be mounted at
the same place as the transmitter. Every firm civil radio transmitter can
work as a radar transmitter at the same time, if a remote receiver
compares the propagation times of the direct signal with the reflected one.
Tests are known that the correct location of an airplane can be calculated
from the evaluation of the signals by three different television stations.

Unmodulated CW- Radar

The transmitted signal of these equipments is constant in amplitude and

frequency. These equipment is specialized in speed measurings.
Distances cannot be measured. E.g. they are used as speed gauges for
police. Newest equipments (LIDAR) work in the laser frequency range and
measure not only the speed.

Modulated CW- Radar

The transmitted signal is constant in the amplitude but modulated in the

frequency. This one gets possible after the principle of the propagation
time measurement with that again. It is an advantage of this equipment
that an evaluation is carried out without reception break and the
measurement result is therefore continuously available. These radar sets
are used where the measuring distance isn't too large and it's necessary a
continuous measuring (e.g. an altitude measuring in airplanes or as
weather radar/windprofiler).

A similar principle is also used by radar sets whose transmitting impulse is

too long to get a well distance resolution. Often this equipment modulate
its transmitting pulse to obtain a distance resolution within the transmitting
pulse with the help of the pulse compression.
 Bistatic Radar Sets

A bistatic radar consists of a separated (by a considerable distance)

transmitting and receiving sites.

Classifications of RADAR systems (use)

Notes:

Multi Function Radars

Active array MultiFunction Radars (MFRs) enable modern weapon

systems to cope with saturation attacks of very small radar cross-section
missiles in a concentrated jamming environment. Such MFRs have to
provide a large number of fire-control channels, simultaneous tracking of
both hostile and defending missiles, and mid-course guidance commands.

The active phased-array antenna comprises flat sensor panels consisting

of arrays of GaAs modules transmitting variable pulse patterns and
building up a detailed picture of the surveillance area. A typical fixed array
configuration system could consist of about 2,000 elements per panel,
with four fixed panels. Each array panel can cover 90° in both elevation
and azimuth to provide complete hemispherical coverage.

Multi Target Tracking Radar

Operational functions of a MultiTarget Tracking Radar (MTTR) include:

 long-range search;
 search information with high data rate for low-flying aircraft;
 search information with high resolution of close in air targets;
 automatic position and height information;
 simultaneous tracking of a lot of aircraft targets;
 target designation facilities for other systems.
Air Traffic Control Radar Sets

Air traffic control radars are used both at civilian and military airports.
Airborne radar is designed especially to meet the strict space and weight
limitations that are necessary for all airborne equipment. Even so, airborne
radar sets develop the same peak power as shipboard and shore-based
sets. In fighter aircraft, the primary mission of a radar is to aid in the
search, interception, and destruction of enemy aircraft.

En-Route Radar

“En Route” radars operates in L-band mostly and displays radar data to
controllers in the en route environment at a maximum range up to 450 km.

Precision Approach Radar Sets (PAR)

The Precision Approach Radar guide aircraft to safe landing under

conditions approaching zero visibility. By means of radar, aircraft are
detected and observed during the final approach and landing sequence.
Guidance information is supplied to the pilot in the form of verbal radio
instructions, or to the automatic pilot (autopilot) in the form of pulsed
control signals.

Air Surveillance Radar Sets (ASR)

These radar equipment are used for the identification of aircrafts,

determination of aircrafts approach sequence and for individual aircraft
approach controls by Air Traffic Security operators. In mean time, these
radars correlate the data obtained from other radar equipments such as
Air Defence Radars or (excluding simple airfields) Mode-4 coordinate-
datas of Secondary Radar equipment. These radar network could be used
under all weather conditions.

Weather Radar Sets

The weather data it finds could be used both for approach support and for
feeding into the wider weather data concentration systems. The antenna
rotation rate between systems is quite variable (3 to 6 rpm is common).
Assuming multiple elevations are used, the weather picture gathered
might be updated with a frequency of one minute and upwards (this
depends on the complexity and number of the elevations required and the
antenna rotation rate).

Radar in recent years has become an important tool for the measurement
of precipitation and the detection of hazardous weather conditions.
Surface Movement Radar (SMR)

Surface Movement Radar (SMR) is the most widely used surveillance

system for airport surveillance at present. SMR refers to primary radar that
provide surveillance cover for the manoeuvring area, which is defined as
that used for the take-off, landing and taxiing of aircraft, excluding aprons.

Air- Defense Radar Sets

Air-Defense Radars can detect air targets and determine their position,
course, and speed in a relatively large area. The maximum range of Air-
Defense Radar can exceed 300 miles, and the bearing coverage is a
complete 360-degree circle.

Air- Surveillance Radar Sets

Air-search radar systems initially detect and determine the position,

course, and speed of air targets in a relatively large area. The maximum
range of air-search radar can exceed 300 miles, and the bearing coverage
is a complete 360-degree circle. Air-search radar systems are usually
divided into two categories, based on the amount of position information
supplied. Radar sets that provide only range and bearing information are
referred to as two-dimensional, or 2D, radars. Radar sets that supply
range, bearing, and height are called three-dimensional, or 3D, radars.

Battle Field Surveillance

The battle field surveillance radar mission is to alert and or cue combat
troops of hostile and unknown aircraft, cruise missiles and unmanned
aerial vehicles, protect friendly forces from fratricide and provide air
situational data to command and control centers.

Mortar Locating Radar Sets

A Mortar Locating Radar provides quick identification to pinpoint enemy

mortar positions in map co-ordinates, enabling artillery units to launch
counter attacks

Air- Policing

Another function of an air-search radar system is guiding combat air patrol

(CAP) aircraft to a position suitable to intercept an enemy aircraft. In the
case of aircraft control, the guidance information is obtained by the radar
operator and passed to the aircraft by either voice radio or a computer link
to the aircraft.
 In fighter aircraft, the primary mission of a radar is to aid in the search,
interception, and destruction of enemy aircraft. This requires that the air
borne radar system have a tracking feature.

Missile Control Radar

A radar system that provides information used to guide a missile to a

hostile target is called Guidance Radar. Missiles use radar to intercept
targets in three basic ways:

1. Beam-rider missiles follow a beam of radar energy that is kept

continuously pointed at the desired target;
2. homing missiles detect and home in on radar energy reflected from the
target; the reflected energy is provided by a radar transmitter either in the
missile or at the launch point and is detected by a receiver in the missile;
3. passive homing missiles home in on energy that is radiated by the target.

Missiles Guidance and Control

The Patriot is an Army surface-to-air, mobile, air defense missile system.

Since the mid-1960s, the system has evolved to defend against aircraft
and cruise missiles, and more recently against short-range ballistic
missiles.

Battle Field Radar Sets

Battlefield Radars usually have a shorter range and are highly specialized
for a particular task. On ships of the navy, the number of specialized radar
antennas are more and more replaced by a multi-function radar.

Miscellaneous Civil Radar Sets

Radar Sets are deployed everywhere where measurements (or

positioning) must inevitably be made at certain ranges. As a result of this
also for civil purposes a very wide operation area is developed.

Speed Gauges

Speed gauges are very specialized CW-radars. A speed gauge uses the
Doppler- frequency for measurement of the speed. Since the value of the
Doppler- frequency depending of the wavelength, these radar sets use a
very high frequency in K-Band.

Navigation
 Navigation radars are designed for ship navigation and surface
surveillance. When navigating in restricted waters, a mariner most often
relies on visual piloting to provide the accuracy required to ensure ship
safety. Visual piloting, however, requires clear weather; often, mariners
must navigate through fog. When weather conditions render visual piloting
impossible on a vessel, radar navigation provides a method of fixing a
vessel’s position with sufficient accuracy to allow safe passage.

Radar-Controlled Cruise Control

Here the radiator grille of a Mercedes-Benz SL-Class roadster, the

Distronic sensor being hidden behind the Mercedes star. This future-
oriented radar unit register the traffic scenario to a distance of up to
150 meters (500 feet) ahead and when necessary apply the brakes
automatically.

Ground-Penetrating Radar

Ground penetrating radar is a geophysical method that has been

developed over the past thirtyfive years for shallow, high-resolution,
subsurface investigations of the earth.

Non-Destructive Material Test

A special radar can be used to penetrate material to detect material-

defects.

Stealth Technology
o Material - less RADAR reflective eg. Airplane’s Wood and cloth, plastic and
fibreglass, submarines rubber
o Shape, Directivity and Orientation - the shape of the target’s reflecting surfaces
is designed such that they reflect energy away from the source. eg F-117A
o Active Cancellation - the target generates a radar signal equal in intensity but
opposite in phase to the predicted reflection of an incident radar signal.
o Radar Absorbent Paint - This consisted of small metallic-coated balls. RADAR
energy is converted to heat rather than being reflected.

References:
o http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Radar
o http://www.radartutorial.eu/01.basics/rb01.en.html
o https://www.slideshare.net/MaulikS2/radarpptx
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ywDE57CtaTM
o https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aEpX3-JaNcE