RADAR FUNDAMENTALS

• Introduction to a radar system

• The Radar Range Equation
• Noise and detection

Page 2
 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System

• RAdio Detection And Ranging

• Radar is an “active sensor”
– Active means it uses energy it radiates
– Sensor means it collects information about the
environment around the system
– Information presented
• To human operator via display
• A computer

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System

Idealized Basic Radar System Elements

Duplexer Transmitted EM Wave

Transmitter
Reflected EM Wave

Receiver
R Target

Signal Processing
td = 2R/c
Display

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System

Monostatic/Bistatic Scattering Geometry

Scattered
Energy

Incident Wave
θ, φ

Target
Monostatic radar system
with transmitter and
receiver at the same Bistatic radar system with
location transmitter and receiver
separated by angles θ and φ
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System
300 GHz

Standard Radar Bands 110 GHz mm

Based on IEEE Standard 521-1984 W
75 GHz
V
40 GHz
27 GHz Ka
ol
r 18 GHz K
nt
o 12 GHz Ku
r C
e 8 GHz
h
rc r Fi X
e a
S athe 4 GHz C
2 GHz S
e
W 1000 MHz or 1 GHz L
300 MHz UHF

H VHF
OT 30 MHz

3 MHz HF

Page 6
 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System

• Two primary types of signals used in radar

– Continuous Wave (CW) radar
• Transmit constant sinusoidal signal at one frequency
• Receiver is constantly active
• Sense target by Doppler shift
• Simple hardware
• TX/RX isolation may be a problem
• Good for measuring range rate
• Poor for measuring range, but can measure range
with more complex hardware
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Intro to a Radar System

• Two primary types of signals used in radar

(continued)
– Pulsed signal radar
• Transmitter is pulsed on and off
• Receiver is active during off periods
• Sense target from received echo pulse
• More complex hardware
• Isolation not a problem
• Good for measuring range
• Poor for measuring range rate
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Doppler Shift

Scattered
Energy

Incident Wave
vr
θ
Target
v
If the target’s total velocity, v, is at an angle θ measured from the
boresight of the radar, then the magnitude of the radial velocity is
given by
v r = v cos (θ )
If the target has radial velocity, vr, with respect to a radar transmitting
a carrier frequency of f0, then the frequency shift is given by
2 vr 2 vr f 0
fd = =
λ c Page 9
 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Derivation of the equation

R
Pt PD

Isotropic radiator

The radiated power density, PD, at some distance R from an

isotropic radiator radiating with power Pt, is given by
Pt
PD = (watts / m 2
)
4πR 2
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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

To be, or not to be…isotropic, that is!

Isotropic pattern Shaped (real) pattern

“Real” antenna patterns are not isotropic

By focusing the power, we obtain a dimensionless

multiplication factor known as antenna gain, G
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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Three Common Radar Beam Shapes

Side View Head-on View

Pencil Beam

Fan Beam

Shaped Beam

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Derivation of the equation

If we denote the gain of the transmitting antenna as Gt,

the radiated power density can now be expressed as

Pt G t
PD = (watts / m 2
)
4π R 2

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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

And finally, we hit something...

Scattered
Energy

Incident Wave

Target
The target will intercept the radar beam and, in turn,
radiate energy. The target acts like an antenna and will
generate its own unique beam pattern, or radar return.
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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

And finally, we can define RCS...

Radar cross section (RCS) is defined as the area

required to intercept and radiate isotropically the same
power as the target would radiate towards the receiving
antenna

We commonly denote RCS by the symbol σ

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Derivation of the equation

The power, P, intercepted by a target of cross section σ is
Pt G t σ
P= (watts)
4π R 2
This power is then re-radiated back toward the receiver.
The power density measured back at the receiving antenna
due to this re-radiation is

Pt G t σ
PD = (watts/m 2
)
(4π ) R
2 4

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Derivation of the equation

The power at the receiving antenna is the product of the

power density at the antenna and the “capture area”, or
effective area, of the antenna. The power received is

Pt G t σ Ae
P = (watts )
(4π ) R 2 4

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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Effective area? Never heard of it...

Ordinarily, we use gain to characterize an antenna
instead of effective antenna area. The relationship
between effective area and gain is
Gr λ2
Ae = (m 2 )
4π
If we further assume that the transmit and receive
antenna is identical (certainly true of the monostatic
case), then
G = Gt = Gr

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Derivation of the equation

Once we substitute for Ae, we have one of the simplest

forms of the radar range equation. It ignores many
(important) factors

Pt G 2σλ 2
Pr = (watts )
(4π ) R
3 4

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Detection Range

To estimate detection ranges, we make a modification of

the form of the radar range equation
Suppose our receiver requires a certain amount of signal
power to detect a target, denoted by Smin. Therefore, the
received power, Pr, must satisfy this relationship

Pr ≥ S min (watts)

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Detection Range
Substituting for Pr, the condition for detection is

Pt G 2σλ2
≥ S min
(4π ) R
3 4

Solving for R
1
 Pt G 2 σλ 2  4
R ≤   (meter)
(
 4 π )3
S min 

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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Detection Range
Therefore, the ideal maximum range of the radar allowed by
signal detectability constraints is

1
 Pt G 2 σλ 2  4
R max =   (meter)
 (4 π ) S min 
3

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Detection Range
To reduce the detection range by half (3 dB) we need to
reduce the RCS by a factor of 16 (12 dB) This holds only in
free space, under ideal conditions. In clutter, the relationship
may vary from R-3 to R-7.
1 RCS reduced by
 Pt G 2 σλ 2  4 factor of 16
R max =   (meter)
 (4 π ) S min 
3 1
 2 σ  2  4

 Pt G  λ 
 R max   16 
=  
Maximum distance
 (meter)
  (4 π ) S min
reduced by factor of 2
 2 
3

All other factors held constant  

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Radar Range Equation

Detection Range
To this point, we have not included the effects of losses on our
radar system. Any real-world system must account for losses. In
general, these losses will cause the maximum detectable range,
Rmax, to decrease. A more general expression for Rmax is
1
 Pt G 2 σλ 2  4
R max =   (m)
 (4 π ) S min L 
3

L = L 1 L 2 L 3 L 4 ... L i L i + 1 ... L n − 1 L n
Each Li is an individual loss factor. They represent the effects of
the many imperfections found in real radar systems: transmission
line loss, impedance mismatches, atmospheric propagation, etc...
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

Scattered
Energy

Target Detection in Free Space Target

Incident Energy

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

• Noise
– An undesired electric disturbance or sound that
tends to interfere with the normal reception or
processing of a desired signal--Electronics and
Nucleonics Dictionary, McGraw-Hill, 1960
– AKA any unwanted signal
– The overall effect of adding noise to a radar
system is a reduction in the actual detection
range

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

Every real system has some noise. The signal received at

the radar, therefore, is both desired signal and noise

+ =
time time time

Desired Signal Noise Received Signal =

Desired Signal + Noise

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

To indicate that our minimum signal is comprised of both

signal and noise, we can incorporate both signal and
noise into the radar range equation

1
 Pt G 2 σλ 2  4
R max =   (m)
 (4 π ) (S + N ) 
3

Page 28
 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
• The most common type of noise is thermal
noise
– Noise generated by the random motion of charged
particles (usually electrons) in conducting media
– Also called “white” noise because all frequency
components are present in equal proportion
– Random, so knowing the value at time t does not
help for knowing the value at time t+1
– Gaussian, so the time-varying amplitude can be
described by a probability density function that
has the familiar “bell-shaped” curve
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
Receiver Noise Figure
Input Noise Power N in = kTBN
k = Boltzmann’s Constant
T = Temperature in Kelvin
BN = Noise Bandwidth in Hertz
FN = Receiver Noise Figure = figure of merit for the receiver
 S in 
 N 
FN =  in 

 S out 
 
 N out 

FN = 1 ⇒ Best possible solution with respect to noise

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

We can write the minimum detectable signal, Smin, in terms

of the noise figure and the input noise power
 
S in = N in ⋅  FN ⋅  out
S
 Solve for Sin
  N out  

 
S in = kTB N ⋅  FN ⋅  out
S
 Substitute for Nin
  N out  

Realize that the minimum detectable signal occurs when the

signal-to-noise ratio for the output is at a minimum level, so
[ ( N) ]
S min = kTB N ⋅ FN ⋅ S
min

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

Taking these other factors into account and re-writing the

combination of noise and signal in terms of a signal-to-noise
ratio yields the following expression for Rmax
1
  4
Pt G 2 λ 2 σ
=  
R max
 (4 π

)
3
kTB N F N
S( N)min


(m)

Smin

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
• There are many ways to decrease the effect
of noise in a radar system. The most
common is integration of the radar pulses.
– Noise is random, and has an expected value of
zero.
– The desired signal is not random, and has an
expected value that is non-zero
Desired Signal Noise
Expected
Value
Expected
time time Value
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RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

– Integration in this case is equivalent to

averaging, so
• Noise effect is reduced (recall that the expected
value of noise is zero)
• Signal effect is relatively unchanged (its expected
value is non-zero)
– Integration can be accomplished using signal
processing
– Each “look” (scan or dwell period) contains
many pulses. Integration results in an
improvement in detection range.
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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
If we assume
n = number of pulses integrated
Ei(n) = Integration Improvement Factor for one pulse
then our detection range is given by
1
 
λ σ {nE i (n )}
2 2 4

 P G 
=
( )
t
R max (m)
 (4 π )3 kTB N F N S 
 N min 

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

• An examination of this form of the radar

range equation makes clear that we can
reduce our detection range by minimizing
the number of pulses returned to the radar
• This idea has important consequences for
RCS design and operational tactics.

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
Because noise is a random process, detection must be
discussed in terms of probability. Knowing the probability
density functions of the noise, and the signal + noise
determines the best placement (statistically) of the detection
threshold.
Detection
Threshold
Signal + Noise
Probability

Noise

Output Voltage
Page 37
 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

• Operational specifications of radars are

given in terms of
– Probability of Detection (Pd)
• The probability that the selected threshold will be
exceeded when a target is present
– Probability of False Alarm (Pfa)
• The probability that the selected threshold will be
exceeded when a target is not present

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection
• Radar design parameters are based on the
required signal-to-noise ratio that will give
the desired Pd and Pfa
– For the following ranges of values
• 10-7 < Pfa < 10-3
• 0.1 < Pd < 0.9
– this is a reasonable approximation for the S/N
S = A + 0.12 AB + 1.7 B
N
 0.62   Pd 
A = ln  B = ln 
 P  1− P 
 fa   fa 

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

Probability of detection for a sine wave

in noise as a function of the signal-to-noise
(power) ratio and the probability of
false alarm [Skolnik, M, Introduction
to Radar Systems (Second Edition),
McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1980, p 28]

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 RADAR FUNDAMENTALS
Noise and Detection

• Low altitude detection has many additional,

important factors
– Clutter
• Statistics are different from noise
• Requirement to distinguish between moving targets
and clutter
• Requires coherent waveforms
– Multipath
– Terrain masking

Page 41