A New Dual Polarized Aperture-Coupled Printed Array for SAR Applications

This paper presents a new design of dual polarized aperture coupled printed antenna array. The finite difference time domain (FDTD) analysis of an aperture coupled microstrip element is performed, and the effects of antenna parameters on its characteristics are obtained to guide the design of the printed array. Then an 8×2 dual polarized array design in X band is introduced with configuration plots. In order to improve its isolation and cross polarization, an outphase displacement feeding technique is adopted in the feed network. Also, the round bends are used instead of conventional right angle bends so as to achieve better VSWR performance. Experimental results are presented, indicating the validity of the design. This dual polarized array can be applied as a sub array of spaceborne SAR systems.

Mutual coupling suppression of aperture coupled microstrip antenna array

A mutual coupling suppression method is proposed for microstrip antenna array by cutting four small semi-circle annular apertures on the metal plate. The structure of antenna array is composed of 2 × 2 four elements. The antenna consists of double layer dielectric, and it realizes circular polarization characteristics by cutting rectangular slot on circular patch in the direction of 45°, by using aperture coupling feeding and reverse feeding principle. There is 90＊ phase difference between adjacent antenna elements. Thus, it cuts off the coupling current field between the elements, suppresses the surface wave and reduces the mutual coupling by cutting four semi-circle annular apertures symmetrically on the metal plate. The simulation results show that after cutting four semi-circle annular apertures, the antenna array coupling coefficients decrease significantly, and the side and back lobe levels are suppressed effectively with the gain of antenna improved. So the proposed method is effective to suppress microstrip antenna array mutual coupling.

PERFORMANCE ANALYSIS OF PULSE COMPRESSION USING PHASE-CODED SIGNALS FOR SPARSE-ARRAY SYNTHETIC IMPULSE AND APERTURE RADAR

Sparse-array Synthetic Impulse and Aperture Radar (SIAR) can isotropically radiate by employing multiple frequencies (synthetic pulse) and multiple antennas (synthetic antenna). According to Ambiguity Function(AF), its range resolution depends only on bandwidth of transmitted signals, however, the distance grating lobes emerge when increasing the time-bandwidth product of transmitted signals. The performance of pulse compression is analyzed with the transmitted signals modulated by phase-coded sequences. It is seen that greater ratio of pulse compression and suppression of range sidelobe in SIAR can be obtained, and its effective range and range resolution is increased as well.

Distributed genetic algorithm for optimal planar arrays of aperture synthesis telescope

Sparse arrays of telescopes have a limited (u, v)-plane coverage. In this paper, an optimization method for designing planar arrays of an aperture synthesis telescope is proposed that is based on distributed genetic algorithm. This distributed genetic algorithm is implemented on a network of workstations using community communication model. Such an aperture synthesis system performs with imperfection of (u, v) components caused by deviations and(or) some missing baselines. With the maximum (u, v)-plane coverage of this rotation-optimized array, the image of the source reconstructed by inverse Fourier transform is satisfactory.

Aperture Efficiency Study of Square Reflect Array Antennas

This paper presents a detailed study of square reflect array (RA) antenna aperture efficiency (ηa). Effects of quantization-phase and limited phase-range errors on radiation pattern, half-power beam width (HPBW) and ηa for different feed locations are investigated. Results show an in-crease in side-lobe levels (SLLs) and a slightly reduction in ηa with quantization-phase augmentation or element phase-range reduction, however, the effects on HPBW are negligible. Nevertheless, the degradation in ηa is negligible when the quantization-phase is lower than 30° or phase-range is more than 300°. Parametric studies have been carried out to provide design guidelines to maximize ηa. It is perceived that the offset-angle plays an important role to determine ηa, especially for feed with narrow beam width.

Position detection of component aperture based on integral imaging technology

Aiming at the problem that it is difficult to locate all the aperture positions of the large size component using Houghcircle detection method,this article presents a non-contact measurement method combining the integral imaging technology withHough circle detection algorithm.Firstly,a set of integral imaging information acquisition algorithms were proposed accordingto the classical imaging theory.Secondly,the camera array experiment device was built by using two-dimensional translationstage and charge coupled device(CCD)camera.When the system is operating,element image array captured with the camera isused to achieve the positioning of the component aperture using Hough circle detection and coordinate acquisition algorithm.Based on the above theory,a verification experiment was carried out.The results show that the detection error of the componentaperture position is within0.3mm,which provides effective theoretical support for the application of integral imagingtechnology in high precision detection

Modular Extremely Large-Scale Array Communication:Near-Field Modelling and Performance Analysis

This paper investigates the wireless communication with a novel architecture of antenna arrays,termed modular extremely large-scale array(XLarray),where array elements of an extremely large number/size are regularly mounted on a shared platform with both horizontally and vertically interlaced modules.Each module consists of a moderate/flexible number of array elements with the inter-element distance typically in the order of the signal wavelength,while different modules are separated by the relatively large inter-module distance for convenience of practical deployment.By accurately modelling the signal amplitudes and phases,as well as projected apertures across all modular elements,we analyse the near-field signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)performance for modular XL-array communications.Based on the non-uniform spherical wave(NUSW)modelling,the closed-form SNR expression is derived in terms of key system parameters,such as the overall modular array size,distances of adjacent modules along all dimensions,and the user's three-dimensional(3D)location.In addition,with the number of modules in different dimensions increasing infinitely,the asymptotic SNR scaling laws are revealed.Furthermore,we show that our proposed near-field modelling and performance analysis include the results for existing array architectures/modelling as special cases,e.g.,the collocated XL-array architecture,the uniform plane wave(UPW)based far-field modelling,and the modular extremely large-scale uniform linear array(XL-ULA)of onedimension.Extensive simulation results are presented to validate our findings.

CROSS-TRACK THREE APERTURES MILLIMETER WAVE SAR SIDE-LOOKING THREE-DIMENSIONAL IMAGING

The airborne cross-track three apertures MilliMeter Wave (MMW) Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) side-looking three-Dimensional (3D) imaging is investigated in this paper. Three apertures are distributed along the cross-track direction, and three virtual phase centers will be obtained through one-input and three-output. These three virtual phase centers form a sparse array which can be used to obtain the cross-track resolution. Because the cross-track array is short, the cross-track resolution is low. When the system works in side-looking mode, the cross-track resolution and height resolution will be coupling, and the low cross-track resolution will partly be transformed into the height uncertainty. The beam pattern of the real aperture is used as a weight to improve the Peak to SideLobe Ratio (PSLR) and Integrated SideLobe Ratio (ISLR) of the cross-track sparse array. In order to suppress the high cross-track sidelobes, a weighting preprocessing method is proposed. The 3D images of a point target and a simulation scene are achieved to verify the feasibility of the proposed method. And the imaging result of the real data obtained by the cross-track three-baseline MMW InSAR prototype is presented as a beneficial attempt.

Exploration on 2D DOA Estimation of Linear Array Motion:Uniform Linear Motion

Generally,due to the limitation of the dimension of the array aperture,linear arrays cannot achieve two-dimensional(2D)direction of arrival(DOA)estimation.But the emergence of array motion provides a chance for that.In this paper,a generalized motion scheme and a novel method of 2D DOA estimation are proposed by exploring the linear array motion.To be specific,the linear arrays are controlled to move along an arbitrary direction at a constant velocity and snap per fixed time delay.All the received signals are processed to synthesize the comprehensive observation vector for an extended 2D virtual aperture.Subsequently,since most of 2D DOA estimation methods are not universal to our proposed motion scheme and the reduced-dimensional(RD)method fails to handle the case of the coupled parameters,a decoupled reduced-complexity multiple signals classification(DRC MUSIC)algorithm is designed specifically.Simulation results demonstrate that:a)our proposed scheme can achieve underdetermined 2D DOA estimation just by the linear arrays;b)our designed DRC MUSIC algorithm has the good properties of high accuracy and low complexity;c)our proposed motion scheme with the DRC method has better universality in the motion direction.

Generalized Parallel Coprime Array for Two-Dimensional DOA Estimation:A Perspective from Maximizing Degree of Freedom

Parallel arrays with coprime subarrays have shown its potential advantages for two dimensional direction of arrival(DOA)estimation.In this paper,by introducing two flexible coprime factors to enlarge the inter-element spacing of parallel uniform subarrays,we propose a generalized parallel coprime array(GPCA)geometry.The proposed geometry enjoys flexible array layouts by the coprime factors and enables to extend the array aperture to achieve great improvement of estimation performance.Meanwhile,we verify that GPCA always can obtain M2 degrees of freedom(DOFs)in co-array domain via 2M sensors after optimization,which outperforms sparse parallel array geometries,such as parallel coprime array(PCA)and parallel augmented coprime array(PACA),and is the same as parallel nested array(PNA)with extended aperture.The superiority of GPCA geometry has been proved by numerical simulations with sparse representation methods.

An Array Extension Method in a Noisy Environment

An array extension method in a noisy environment was proposed to improve angular resolution and array gain. The proposed method combines the FOC （fourth-order cumulants） technique with the ETAM （extended towed array measurements） method to extend array aperture and suppress Gaussian noise, First, successive measurements of a virtual uniform linear array were constructed by applying lburth-order cumulants to measurements of uniform linear array; Gaussian noise in these measurements was also eliminated. Then, the array was extended by compensating phase differences using the ETAM method, Finally, the synthetic aperture was extended further by the fourth-order cumulants technique. The proposed FOC-ETAM-FOC method not only improves angular resolution and array gain, but also effectively suppresses Gaussian noise. Furthermore, it inherits the advantages of the ETAM method. Simulation results showed that the FOC-ETAM-FOC method achieved better angular resolution and array gain than the ETAM method. Furthermore this method outperforms the ETAM method in Gaussian noise environment.

Array-error estimation method for multi-channel SAR systems in azimuth

For multi-channel synthetic aperture radar（SAR） systems, since the minimum antenna area constraint is eliminated,wide swath and high resolution SAR image can be achieved.However, the unavoidable array errors, consisting of channel gainphase mismatch and position uncertainty, significantly degrade the performance of such systems. An iteration-free method is proposed to simultaneously estimate position and gain-phase errors.In our research, the steering vectors corresponding to a pair of Doppler bins within the same range bin are studied in terms of their rotational relationships. The method is based on the fact that the rotational matrix only depends on the position errors and the frequency spacing between the paired Doppler bins but is independent of gain-phase error. Upon combining the projection matrices corresponding to the paired Doppler bins, the position errors are directly obtained in terms of extracting the rotational matrix in a least squares framework. The proposed method, when used in conjunction with the self-calibration algorithm, performs stably as well as has less computational load, compared with the conventional methods. Simulations reveal that the proposed method behaves better than the conventional methods even when the signal-to-noise ratio（SNR） is low.

DOA Estimation Based on Subspace Compensation for Unfolded Coprime Array

Direction of arrival(DOA)estimation for unfolded coprime array(UFCA)is discussed,and a method based on subspace compensation is proposed.Conventional DOA estimation meth-ods partition the UFCA into two subarrays for separate estimations,which are then combined for unique DOA determination.However,the DOA estimation performance loss is caused as only the partial array aperture is exploited.We use the estimations from one subarray as initial estimations,and then enhance the estimation results via a compensation based on the whole array,which is im-plemented via a simple least squares(LS)operation constructed from the initial estimation and first-order Taylor expansion.Compared to conventional methods,the DOA estimation performance is improved while the computational complexity is in the same level.Multiple simulations are con-ducted to verify the efficiency of the proposed approach.

Hybrid alternate projection algorithm and its application for practical conformal array pattern synthesis

Based on the fabricated 12-element cavity-backed microstrip sector cylinder array,a novel hybrid alternate projection algorithm（HAPA）,which combines analytical method with numerical techniques effectively,is proposed for synthesizing the pattern of practical conformal array.The algorithm applies the variable direction aperture projection method with mutual coupling correction techniques to provide the good initial excitations of elements to the enhanced alternate projection algorithm（EAPA）.In order to do further optimization,which improves the convergent speed of the algorithm significantly.Finally,the HAPA has been applied to the fabricated sector cylinder array with mutual coupling considered.The results of synthesized patterns,such as low sidelobe with null points formed pattern,beam scanning with low sidelobe pattern and the shaped beam pattern are presented.It demonstrates the validity of HAPA in practical conformal array synthesis.

Research of Background Noise Characteristics of the Zhangzhou Seismic Array

The data recorded during the site survey in the Zhangzhou area in Fujian Province between October 23, 2007 and December 3, 2007 was analyzed. The main methods adopted for the noise level of this area are the noise root mean square( RMS),noise power spectrum density and noise coherency function. The results indicate that the noise levels of the survey sites are higher in the 1 s-10 s periods,which is the main frequency band of preliminary microseism,and also,two main noise sources were found in 1. 5 Hz and around 5 Hz. According to arithmetic,the direction and frequency band of the noise source were analyzed and academic proofs were presented. At last,we found that the noise source in 1. 5 Hz was made by the water wave aroused by the wind in the reservoir region and the noise source around 5 Hz was made by the power station in the northeast direction.

Sparse three-dimensional imaging for forward-looking array SAR using spatial continuity

For forward-looking array synthetic aperture radar(FASAR),the scattering intensity of ground scatterers fluctuates greatly since there are kinds of vegetations and topography on the surface of the ground,and thus the signal-to-noise ratio(SNR)of its echo signals corresponding to different vegetations and topography also varies obviously.Owing to the reason known to all,the performance of the sparse reconstruction of compressed sensing(CS)becomes worse in the case of lower SNR,and the quality of the sparse three-dimensional imaging for FASAR would be affected significantly in the practical application.In this paper,the spatial continuity of the ground scatterers is introduced to the sparse recovery algorithm of CS in the threedimensional imaging for FASAR,in which the weighted least square method of the cubic interpolation is used to filter out the bad and isolated scatterer.The simulation results show that the proposed method can realize the sparse three-dimensional imaging of FASAR more effectively in the case of low SNR.

BEAM BROADENING SYNTHESIS FOR SAR ANTENNA ARRAY BASED ON PROJECTION MATRIX ALGORITHM

A new beam broadening synthesis technique for Synthetic Aperture Radar(SAR) antenna array, namely Projection Matrix Algorithm(PMA) is presented. The theory of PMA is introduced firstly, and then the iterative renewed manner is improved to resolve the unbalance problem under amplitude and phase control. In order to validate the algorithm correct and effective, an actual engineering application example is investigated. The beam synthesis results of 1.0~4.5 times broadening under the phase only control and the amplitude and phase control using improved PMA are given. The results show that the beam directivity, the beam broadening, and the side-lobe level requirements were met. It is demonstrated that the improved PMA was effective and feasible for SAR application.

Holographic Microwave Imaging Array for Brain Stroke Detection

This paper proposes a new holographic microwave imaging array (HMIA) technique for brain stroke detection. This approach is based on holographic microwave and aperture synthesis imaging techniques. The system is designed for operation at a single frequency of 2.5 GHz. A realistic three dimensional (3D) head model that contains skin, fat, skull, cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), grey matter, white matter and ischemic or hemorrhagic stroke area is developed using MATLAB to demonstrate the proposed HMIA imaging algorithm.A matching solution medium is used between the antennas and the head model. The study is conducted using HMIA computer simulations and 3D head model with-stroke.The simulation results showed that small stroke area (5 mmin diameter) could be successfully detected with the HMIA approach.

Dwell Scheduling Algorithm for Digital Array Radar

Aiming at the problem of resource allocation for digital array radar（ DAR）,a dwell scheduling algorithm is proposed in this paper. Firstly,the integrated priority of different radar tasks is designed,which ensures that the imaging tasks are scheduled without affecting the search and tracking tasks; Then,the optimal scheduling model of radar resource is established according to the constraints of pulse interleaving; Finally,a heuristic algorithm is used to solve the problem and a sparse-aperture cognitive ISAR imaging method is used to achieve partial precision tracking target imaging. Simulation results demonstrate that the proposed algorithm can both improve the performance of the radar system,and generate satisfactory imaging results.

Optimum linear array of an optical aperture synthesis telescope

Measuring out successively the degree of coherence of the source produced by any couple of the small apertures via rotating an array composed of the small aperture telescopes, and synthesizing them into the (u, v) coverage of the source, the brightness distribution of the source can be obtained by the inverse Fourier transform of the degree of coherence with much higher resolution than from a single telescope. This article discusses the arrangements of the small apertures in the linear array, and found a method to decide the quality of the arrangements, the judgment factorε is introduced to calculate the arrangements in quantity. There are 1.5x1011 possibilities for 11 apertures. Therefore, the computer procedures are programmed to select the optimum arrangements. The effect of the simulation of the aperture synthesis is given for the linear array. The simulation method can also be used in the nonlinear arrays.