Scientific and technical developments

The Department #17 team is successfully developing a promising area of applied radiophysics – modern Noise Radar or Noise Radar Technology.

The idea of Noise Radar has been known for a long time and consists in the use of continuous or pulsed noise (random) signals (NS) as probing signals and coherent reception of their reflections. The first experiments at the beginning of the last century on radio detection of metal objects were carried out using noise (random) signals, but with their incoherent reception: G. Hülschmaer in Germany created and patented the first tele-metal-detector in a monostatic design, while A. S. Popov in Russia a little earlier proposed and tested in Sevastopol an installation with a similar purpose, but in a bistatic version.

The methods for chaotization of electronic systems and methods for digital-analog processing of random signals, developed in the Department #17, made it possible to create a number of generators of chaotic oscillations and controlled delay lines, on the basis of which samples of modern Noise Radars of mm– and microwave ranges were developed and tested and, thereby, laid the foundations of modern Noise Radar Technology (NRT).

 The NRT has three main components:

1) development and research of chaotic BL generators based on the developed methods for chaotizing oscillations in electronic systems of the microwave and mm bands;

2) development of broadband digital-analog correlators;

3) development of Noise Radars and remote sensing systems for multiple applications.

Provided that coherent reception of radar reflections is ensured, Noise Waveform can be considered as the most suitable radar signal, which makes it possible in the simplest way to ensure such important operational characteristics of the radar as interference immunity, electromagnetic compatibility, covert operation, small dimensions, etc. These performances of Noise Radars are due to the unique properties of optimal reception of random signals in a correlation receiver.

Several new Noise Radars, Ground Noise Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and microwave sensors have been developed and tested in the Department #17:

1. The world’s first Ka-band bistatic Ground Noise SAR has been developed, manufactured and tested, using a new type of antenna developed by us – antennas with radiation pattern synthesis, with digital signal processing & SAR image formation. It was developed within the framework of the STCU Project for monitoring the Sarcophagus of the Chernobyl Nuclear Power Plant.The developed Noise SAR has a wide range of applications, and in most cases, it is intended for monitoring large engineering structures: buildings, hangars, bridges, television towers, dams, etc., in order to record structural changes invisible to the eye and, therefore, either to confirm their stability, or to detect their pre-catastrophic The developed Ground Noise SARs can also be used to monitor transport areas: highways, railway junctions, seaports, and airport runways.
2. The world’s first X-band Pulse-Coherent surveillance Noise SAR with coherent processing of the radar returns was developed, manufactured and tested. This Noise Radar can operate in two modes: Surveillance mode and Arc-SAR mode. It was developed and supplied for DSTA, Singapore.
3. W-band CW Noise Radar for Car Collision Warning Radar.
4. W-band Doppler Noise Radar for investigation of radar signal scattering by sea surface.
5. X-band pulse coherent linear and circular SARs.
6. Ka-band Intrusion Detection sensor.
7. C-band Stepped Frequency/Frequency Hopping Noise Radar L-band Ground and Wall Penetrating Noise Radars.
8. Software Defined Noise Radar.
9. Bistatic Noise Radar with L-shaped Antenna Arrays for SAR Tomography – 3D Imaging Noise Radar.
10. Ku-band Microwave Video camera Demonstrator on the basis of Noise Stepped Frequency Radar.