Polarimetric Radar Cross-Section Imaging

The radar cross-section (RCS) is a fundamental quantity which determines if a radar target can be reliably detected by a radar system and is therefore relevant for both civil and military radar applications. This quantity can be modified by altering the shape of the target and is measured within RCS measurement ranges. Data gained from these measurements helps to identify if design goals could be reached and therefore makes the analysis of the data to an essential part of the design process. However, this analysis is challenging since the physical scattering mechanisms influencing the RCS are not apparent and must be inferred from the measurement data. Techniques allowing to extract and visualize these mechanisms would therefore simplify the analysis of RCS measurement data.

The goal of this thesis is to identify processing techniques which support the designer by simplifying the analysis of RCS measurement data. For this, radar imaging techniques are combined with polarimetric methods. This allows to spatially resolve different parts of a target and to determine the scattering mechanisms occurring there. It is shown throughout the thesis that these methods allow to identify relevant characteristics of radar targets and therefore simplify their study and design significantly.