RADAR RANGE EQUATION Aim:

To study the radar range equation using the signal to noise ratio concept by the means of MATLAB tool.

Theory: 1.INTRODUCTION TO RADAR:

Radar is an electronic device for the detection and location of objects. Radar is used to extend the capability of mans sense for observing his environment, especially the sense of vision. Radar can be designed to see through those conditions impervious to normal human vision, such as darkness, haze, fog, rain, and snow. In addition, radar has the advantage of being able to measure the distance or range to the object. Radar is a contraction of the words radio detection and ranging. The name radar reflects the emphasis placed by the presence of a target and measures its range. 2. THE RADAR EQUATION: In its most fundamental form the radar equation is written as, Pr = (P tGtAr) / (4R2)2 Antenna theory gives the relationship between antenna gain and effective area as a) Gt= (4At) / 2 b) Gr = (4Ar) / 2 The maximum radar range Rmax is the distance beyond which the target can no longer be detected. It occurs when the received echo signal Pr just equals the minimum detectable signal Smin.Therefore, R max = [(PtG22)/ (4)3Smin]1/4 The above simplified versions of the radar equation do not adequately describe the performance of practical radars equipments to a satisfactory degree of accuracy. 3. DIFFERENT FACTORS DECIDING RADAR EQUATION: A) STATISTICAL FACTORS: Many important factors that affect range are not explicitly included. The important factor that must be considered in the radar equation is the statistical or unpredictable nature of the several of the parameters. The minimum detectable Smin and the target cross section meteorological conditions along the propagation path and the performance of the radar operator are statistical in nature and must be expressed in statistical terms. B) NOISE: Noise is the chief factor limiting receiver sensitivity. There would exist an unavoidable component of noise generated by the thermal motion of conduction electrons in the receiver input stages which is called the thermal noise. Available thermal-noise power = kTBn

The total noise at the output of the receiver is equal to the thermal-noise power multiplied by a noise figure. The noise figure is, Fn = No / (kToB nGa) = (Si/Ni) / (So/No) The noise figure is a measure of signal-to-noise-ratio degradation. If the minimum detectable signal Smin is that value of Si corresponding to the minimum ratio of output (IF) signal-to-noise ratio (So/No)min necessary for detection, then Smin =kToB nFn(So/No)min Substituting into Rmax equation above we get, R4max = (PtGAe) / ((4)2 kToBnFn(So/No)min) C) LOSSES: Different types of losses like system loss, antenna loss, signal processing loss and propagation effects reduce the signal- to- noise ratio at the receiver output. Various losses That can occur throughout the system or the loss in performance usually experienced when the electronic equipment is operated in the field. So final radar equation considering all the above factors can be written as, R4max = (PtGAe) / ((4)2 kToBnFnL(So/No)min) Where Rmax = maximum radar range, m Pt = peak transmitting power, watts G = antenna gain Ae = antenna aperture, m2 = radar cross section of target, m2 k = Boltzmanns constant = 1.38 10 -23 joule/deg To = standard temperature = 2900K B n = receiver noise bandwidth, cps Fn = noise figure L = total losses (So/No)min = minimum ratio of output (IF) signal-to-noise ratio The radar equation developed applies primarily to pulse radar, although it may be readily modified to accommodate CW, FM-CW, pulse Doppler, MTI, or tracking radar. The radar range equation is strictly valid in the far zone (Fraunhofer region) of the antenna.

A) RADAR EQUATION MATLAB CODE:

function [snr] = radar_eq(pt, freq, g, sigma, te, b, nf, loss, range) c = 3.0e+8; % speed of light lambda = c / freq; % wavelength p_peak = 10*log10(pt); % convert peak power to Db lambda_sqdb = 10*log10(lambda^2); % compute wavelength square in dB sigmadb = 10*log10(sigma); % convert sigma to dB four_pi_cub = 10*log10((4.0 * pi)^3); % (4pi)^3 in dB k_db = 10*log10(1.38e-23); % Boltzman's constant in dB te_db = 10*log10(te); % noise temp. in dB b_db = 10*log10(b); % bandwidth in dB range_pwr4_db = 10*log10((range).^4); % vector of target range^4 in dB num = p_peak + g + g + lambda_sqdb + sigmadb; den = four_pi_cub + k_db + te_db + b_db + nf + loss + range_pwr4_db; snr = num - den; return

B) SIGNAL TO NOISE PLOT MATLAB CODE:

close all clear all pt = 1.5e+6; % peak power in Watts freq = 5.6e+9; % radar operating frequency in Hz g = 45.0; % antenna gain in dB sigma = 0.1; % radar cross section in m squared te = 290.0; % effective noise temperature in Kelvins b = 5.0e+6; % radar operating bandwidth in Hz nf = 3.0; %noise figure in dB loss = 6.0; % radar losses in dB range = linspace(25e3,165e3,1000); % range to target from 25 Km 165 Km, 1000 points snr1 = radar_eq(pt, freq, g, sigma, te, b, nf, loss, range); snr2 = radar_eq(pt, freq, g, sigma/10, te, b, nf, loss, range); snr3 = radar_eq(pt, freq, g, sigma*10, te, b, nf, loss, range); % plot SNR versus range figure(1) rangekm = range ./ 1000; plot(rangekm,snr3,'k',rangekm,snr1,'k -.',rangekm,snr2,'k:') grid legend('\sigma = 0 dBsm','\sigma = -10dBsm','\sigma = -20 dBsm') xlabel ('Detection range - Km'); ylabel ('SNR - dB'); snr1 = radar_eq(pt, freq, g, sigma, te, b, nf, loss, range); snr2 = radar_eq(pt*.4, freq, g, sigma, te, b, nf, loss, range); snr3 = radar_eq(pt*1.8, freq, g, sigma, te, b, nf, loss, range); figure (2) plot(rangekm,snr3,'k',rangekm,snr1,'k -.',rangekm,snr2,'k:') grid legend('Pt = 2.16 MW','Pt = 1.5 MW','Pt = 0.6 MW') xlabel ('Detection range - Km'); ylabel ('SNR - dB');

Output:

FIGURE 1

FIGURE 2

Conclusion:
From the radar equation implemented in matlab it can be observed that, From both the figure: (So/No)min (1/R) 1) As the detection range for the radar increases the signal to noise ratio decreases i.e. as the range for the radar increases, increasing noise introduced in the signal & weakening of signal further degraded the signal over a long range. 2) But it is not the only factor that affects the range of radar, From figure 1: (So/No)min Signal to noise ratio depends also on the radar cross section. As the radar cross section increases the signal to noise ratio increases i.e. signal to noise ratio at the output of receiver is improved and the received signal is stronger to extract the correct range information over the same range. And R

For the same (So/No)min , the range can be increased by increasing the radar cross section . From figure 2: (S o/No)min Pt Signal to noise ratio depends also on the strength of transmitted power. As the transmitting power increases the signal to noise ratio increases i.e. by the stronger signal, signal to noise ratio at the output of receiver is improved over the same range. And R Pt

For the same (So/No)min , the range can be increased by increasing the transmitting power Pt . So that various factors affecting the range of radar can be easily studied.