On sensitivity analysis of low probability of intercept (LPI) capability

For operational purposes, the low probability of intercept (LPI) capability of a waveform is usually quantified by the area of being intercepted by a detector. The radius of a circular area equivalent to the vulnerable area, the Circular equivalent vulnerable radius (CEVR), is used to indicate the vulnerability. In this paper, we show that CEVR is a function of three sets of parameters-the interceptor performance, the emitter antenna pattern, and the geometric/link parameters. We investigate the impact of the interceptor performance and the emitter antenna pattern on CEVR. We show that it is appropriate to present CEVR as a function of the interceptor performance within a statistical context like confidence interval. The representation is able to capture the effect of the emitter antenna pattern and the link variation. We illustrate this sensitivity analysis framework through a numerical example, in which a frequency hopped DPSK waveform and a filter-bank combiner (FBC) interceptor are considered.