An experimental microwave imaging system for breast tumor detection on layered phantom model

In this paper, the microwave imaging system currently being developed and realized at the Scientific and Technological Research Council-BILGEM, is introduced. A stacked patch antenna has been designed, fabricated and tested in operation in the experimental setup consisting of a spectrum analyzer (with vector network analysis option) and a planarly layered breast phantom model with tumor. Images are successfully obtained by using scattering electromagnetic waves from the tumor (S₁₁). In the future study, ultrawide-band (UWB) confocal microwave radar-based imaging system with right-handed circularly polarized (RHCP) and left-handed circularly polarized (LHCP) antennas located as an array on a section of a hemisphere, as well as improved and fast imaging algorithms, will be designed and developed in order to minimize mutual coupling between antenna elements, reflections from the skin and mechanical parts of the antenna system for getting better resolution results than similar recent developed microwave imaging systems.