Performance expectations of an airborne surveillance radar based on phase monopulse techniques

In a surveillance or imaging radar, both coherent and noncoherent integration or averaging can be used as a means to increase the signal-to-noise power ratio. The paper examines the expected performance of a simple airborne radar based on a fixed antenna phase differential (monopulse) radar which uses noncoherent integration of pulses. Theoretical equations which describe the effects of noncoherent pulse integration in classical radar analysis are extended to the case of a two-antenna phase monopulse radar. Useful simplifications to the probability density function of the output signal accrue when it is recognised that the image produced from such a radar is a digital image composed of discrete picture elements of range and azimuth. It is shown that provided the signal-to-noise and signal-to-clutter ratios are above 0 dB, reasonable probabilities of detection and false alarm are possible