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Photonics illuminates the future of radar

Nature volume 507, pages 310–312 (2014)Cite this article

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The first implementation of a fully photonics-based coherent radar system shows how photonic methods for radio-frequency signal generation and measurement may facilitate the development of software-defined radar systems. See Letter p.341

For well over a decade, there has been intense pursuit of photonic techniques for the synthesis and processing of broadband radio-frequency signals in applications ranging from wireless communications to radar. Such work is motivated by one main challenge: the lack of electronic systems capable of directly generating, processing and digitizing signals that have high central frequencies and large bandwidths while maintaining signal fidelity (minimal spurious-signal content and low noise levels). That challenge is sure to remain, given the escalating interest in higher centre frequencies and greater signal agility for software-defined radio and radar architectures — those in which the desired signal can be rapidly changed under software control. Such signal agility could offer, for example, increased radar resolution. On page 341 of this issue, Ghelfi et al.1 describe the first field demonstration of a coherent radar system based on photonic techniques. Their work shows that such techniques may indeed provide capability for next-generation radar systems.

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Figure 1: A photonics-based radar system.

References

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  1. Optical Sciences Division, Jason D. McKinney is at the Microwave Photonics Section, US Naval Research Laboratory, Washington DC 20375, USA.,

    Jason D. McKinney

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  1. Jason D. McKinney
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Correspondence to Jason D. McKinney.

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McKinney, J. Photonics illuminates the future of radar. Nature 507, 310–312 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1038/507310a

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