This paper explores the challenges of radar cross section (RCS) measurements at W-band and proposes several techniques to overcome these challenges to obtain an accurate RCS measurement. This paper combines… Click to show full abstract
This paper explores the challenges of radar cross section (RCS) measurements at W-band and proposes several techniques to overcome these challenges to obtain an accurate RCS measurement. This paper combines $S_{11}$ measurements collected using traditional radio frequency (RF) hardware with post-processing algorithms to extract RCS values with a single antenna. Vector background subtraction and time-gating suppress unwanted reflections while increasing the system’s dynamic range capability. Experiments are conducted at the University of Oklahoma’s mm-Wave Laboratory with a Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) and frequency extender to evaluate the proposed measurement techniques. The setup is calibrated with a metal sphere, and the RCS of a smaller metal sphere and an arrangement of four spheres is extracted. The single sphere’s RCS is measured with a 0.304 dBsm average error, and the distributed object under test (OUT) RCS is measured with a 1.60 dBsm average error from 80-90 GHz. Each OUT is placed on a 3D-printed pedestal, and the remainder of the test hardware is part of an existing mm-Wave antenna measurement configuration. The post-processing clutter cancellation techniques enable a flexible test configuration to isolate the OUT RCS without purchasing specialized hardware.
               
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