Principles of Radar

Engineering
SUBJECT CODE:17EC4702/C K. Shri Ramtej,
Assistant Professor,
B TECH IV YEAR I SEM ECE, VRSEC
 Unit II
MTI Radar
Introduction to Doppler and MTI Radar
▪ The radars discussed in previous chapter were required to detect targets in the
presence of noise.
▪ But in real world, radars have to deal with more than receiver noise since they can
also receive echoes from natural environment such as land, sea, and weather.
▪ These echoes are called clutter echoes.
▪ Clutter echoes can be many orders of magnitude larger than aircraft echoes.
▪ When an aircraft echo and a clutter echo appear at same time, the aircraft might not
be detectable.
▪ The most powerful method for detecting moving targets in the presence of large
clutter is by taking advantage of the doppler effect.
MTI Radar and Pulse Doppler Radar
▪ The change of frequency of the radar echo signal due to relative velocity between
the radar and moving target is called doppler effect.
▪ A pulse radar that employs the doppler shift for detecting moving targets is either
an MTI (Moving Target Indication) radar or a Pulse Doppler Radar.
𝑐
▪ The MTI radar has a prf low enough to not have any range ambiguities (𝑅𝑢𝑛 = )
2𝑓𝑝
but have many ambiguities in doppler domain.
▪ Pulse doppler radar has a prf large enough to avoid doppler ambiguities, but it can
have numerous range ambiguities.
▪ There is also a medium-prf pulse doppler radar that accepts both range and doppler
ambiguities.
MTI Radar and Pulse Doppler Radar
▪ In addition to detecting moving targets in the presence of large clutters, the doppler
frequency shift has other important applications in radar, such as
▪ allowing CW (continuous wave) radar to detect moving targets and to measure radial
velocity,
▪ synthetic aperture radar for producing images of targets
Doppler Frequency Shift
▪ The changing pitch of an audible siren from an emergency vehicle as it travels
towards or away from the listener is an example of doppler effect.
▪ If the range to a target is R, then the total number of wavelengths in the two-way
path from radar to target and return is 2R/𝜆.
▪ Each wavelength corresponds to a phase change of 2𝜋 radians.
▪ The total phase change in the two-way propagation path is then
2𝑅 4𝜋𝑅
𝜙 = 2𝜋 × =
𝜆 𝜆
▪ If target is in motion relative to the radar, then R will change and hence phase.
▪ Differentiating 𝜙 with respect to time gives the rate of change of phase, which is
called as angular frequency.
Doppler Frequency Shift
▪ Angular frequency is given by
𝑑𝜙 4𝜋 𝑑𝑅 4𝜋𝑣𝑟
𝜔𝑑 = = = = 2𝜋𝑓𝑑
𝑑𝑡 𝜆 𝑑𝑡 𝜆
▪ where 𝑣𝑟 = 𝑑𝑅/𝑑𝑡 is the radial velocity (m/s), or rate of change of range with
time.
▪ If the angle between the target’s velocity
vector and the radar line of sight to the
target is 𝜃, then 𝑣𝑟 = 𝑣 𝑐𝑜𝑠𝜃, where 𝑣
is the speed or magnitude of vector
velocity
Doppler Frequency Shift
▪ The rate of change of 𝜙 with time is the angular frequency 𝜔𝑑 = 2𝜋𝑓𝑑 .
▪ where 𝑓𝑑 is the doppler frequency shift
2𝑣𝑟 2𝑓𝑡 𝑣𝑟
𝑓𝑑 = =
𝜆 𝑐
▪ The radar frequency is 𝑓𝑡 = 𝑐/𝜆.
▪ If doppler frequency is in Hz, radial velocity is in knots (1kt=0.5144m/s), and radar
wavelength is in meters, we have
1.03𝑣𝑟 (𝑘𝑡) 𝑣𝑟 (𝑘𝑡)
𝑓𝑑 (𝐻𝑧) = ≈
𝜆 (𝑚) 𝜆 (𝑚)
Simple CW Doppler Radar
▪ The block diagram of a very simple CW (Continuous Wave) radar that utilizes the
doppler frequency shift to detect moving targets is shown in figure.
Simple CW Doppler Radar
▪ Unlike a pulse radar, a CW radar transmits while it receives.
▪ If there is no doppler shift, the weak CW echo signal would not be detected in the
presence of much stronger signal from the transmitter.
▪ Filtering in frequency domain is used to separate the weak doppler-shifted echo
signal from the strong transmitter signal in a CW radar.
▪ The transmitter generates a continuous sinusoidal oscillation at frequency 𝑓𝑡 , which
is then radiated by antenna.
▪ On reflection by a moving target, the transmitted signal is shifted by the doppler
effect by an amount ±𝑓𝑑 .
▪ The + sign applies when distance between radar and target is decreasing.
Simple CW Doppler Radar
▪ The – sign applies when distance between radar and target is increasing.
▪ To utilize the doppler frequency shift, a radar must be able to recognize that the
received echo signal has a frequency different from that which was transmitted.
▪ This is the function of that portion of the transmitter signal that leaks into receiver.
▪ The transmitter leakage signal acts as a reference to determine that a frequency
change has taken place.
▪ The detector or mixer, multiplies the echo signal at frequency 𝑓𝑡 ± 𝑓𝑑 with the
transmitter leakage signal 𝑓𝑡 .
▪ The doppler filter allows the difference frequency from detector to pass and rejects
the higher frequencies.
Simple CW Doppler Radar
▪ The doppler filter has a lower cut-off to remove the transmitter leakage signal and
clutter echoes.
▪ The upper cut-off frequency is determined by the maximum radial velocity
expected of moving targets.
▪ The doppler filter passes signals with a doppler frequency 𝑓𝑑 located within its pass
band, but the sign of doppler is lost along with direction of the target.
▪ So we cannot know whether the target is approaching towards the radar or moving
away from radar.
Pulse Radar that extracts the doppler
frequency-shifted echo signal
▪ We cannot simply convert the CW radar to a pulse radar by turning the CW
oscillator ON and OFF to generate pulses.
▪ Generating pulses in this manner removes the reference signal at the receiver.
▪ One way to introduce reference signal
is shown in the figure.
▪ The received echo signal is mixed with
the output of CW oscillator which acts
as a coherent (phase is preserved) reference.
Pulse Radar that extracts the doppler
frequency-shifted echo signal
▪ If the transmitted signal of frequency 𝑓𝑡 is represented as 𝐴𝑡 sin(2𝜋𝑓𝑡 𝑡), then the
received signal is 𝐴𝑟 sin[2𝜋𝑓𝑡 𝑡 − 𝑇𝑅 ], where 𝐴𝑡 is amplitude of transmitted signal
and 𝐴𝑟 is amplitude of received echo signal.
2𝑅
▪ The round trip time 𝑇𝑅 = , where R is range and c is velocity of propagation.
𝑐
▪ If target is moving towards the radar, the range is decreasing and is represented as
𝑅 = 𝑅0 − 𝑣𝑟 𝑡, where 𝑣𝑟 = radial velocity.
▪ With these substitutions, the received signal is
Pulse Radar that extracts the doppler
frequency-shifted echo signal
2𝑓𝑡 𝑣𝑟 2𝑣𝑟
▪ The received frequency changes by the factor = , which is the doppler
𝑐 𝜆
frequency shift 𝑓𝑑 .
▪ If the target is moving away from the radar, the sign of doppler frequency would be
minus, and the received frequency would be less than that transmitted.
▪ The received signal is heterodyned (mixed) with reference signal 𝐴𝑟𝑒𝑓 sin 2𝜋𝑓𝑡 𝑡
and the difference frequency is extracted, which is given as

2𝑣
▪ where 𝐴𝑑 = amplitude, 𝑓𝑑 = 𝑟 = doppler frequency, and the relation 𝑓𝑡 = c/𝜆 was
𝜆
used. (Cosine replaces sine in the trigonometry of heterodyning process)
▪ For stationary targets, 𝑓𝑑 = 0 and the output signal is constant.
Pulse Radar that extracts the doppler
frequency-shifted echo signal
▪ For moving targets, the output is a time-varying signal which is basis for
rejecting clutter echoes and allowing moving target echoes to pass.
▪ If radar pulse width is long enough and if the target’s doppler frequency is large
enough, it may be possible to detect doppler frequency shift on the basis of
frequency change with a single pulse.
▪ To detect a doppler shift on the basis of a single pulse of width 𝜏, there should be
at least one cycle of doppler frequency 𝑓𝑑 with in the pulse; or 𝑓𝑑 𝜏 > 1.
▪ This condition is not usually met when detecting aircraft since the doppler
frequency 𝑓𝑑 is generally much smaller than 1/ 𝜏.
▪ Thus doppler effect cannot be utilized with a single short pulse in this case. More
than one pulse is needed to recognize a change in frequency due to doppler effect
Pulse Radar that extracts the doppler
frequency-shifted echo signal

a) Echo pulse train at RF or IF portion of receiver; b) Video pulse train after phase
detector when 𝑓𝑑 > 1/𝜏; b) Video pulse train after phase detector when 𝑓𝑑 < 1/𝜏
Sweep-to-Sweep Subtraction
▪ Sweep is what occurs in the time between two
transmitted pulses, or pulse repetition interval.
▪ Fig (a) and (b) represent bipolar video (both +ve
and –ve amplitudes) from two successive sweeps
of an MTI radar.
▪ The fixed clutter echoes remain the same from
sweep to sweep.
▪ If one sweep is subtracted from the previous
sweep, fixed clutter echoes will cancel and
will not be detected or displayed.
Sweep-to-Sweep Subtraction
▪ On the other hand, moving targets change in
amplitude from sweep to sweep because of their
doppler frequency shift.
▪ If one sweep is subtracted from the other, the
result will be an uncancelled residue.
▪ How is this operation performed ?
Delay-Line Canceller
▪ Subtraction of echoes from two successive sweeps is accomplished in a delay
line canceler.
Delay-Line Canceller
▪ The output of the MTI receiver is digitized and is given as an input to delay line
canceler.
▪ Delay line canceler performs the role of a doppler filter.
▪ The delay T is achieved by storing the radar output from one pulse transmission
or sweep, in a digital memory for a time equal to pulse repetition period so that
𝑇 = 𝑇𝑝 = 1/𝑓𝑝 .
Delay-Line Canceller
▪ The output obtained after subtraction of two successive sweeps is bipolar video
since echoes contain both positive and negative amplitudes.
▪ It is usually called video, even though it is a series of digital words rather than an
analog video signal.
▪ The absolute value of bipolar video is taken, which is unipolar video.
Delay-Line Canceller
▪ Unipolar video is needed if an analog display is used that requires positive
signals only.
▪ The unipolar digital video is then converted to an analog signal by D/A converter
if processed signal is to be displayed on PPI.
▪ Alternatively, digital signals may be used for automatically making detection
decision and for further data processing such as automatic tracking or target
detection.
MTI Radar Block Diagram
▪ A more elaborate block diagram of an MTI radar
employing a power amplifier as the transmitter.
▪ The local oscillator of an MTI radar’s
superheterodyne receiver must be more stable
than local oscillator for a radar that does not
employ doppler.
▪ If phase of local oscillator changes significantly
between pulses, an uncancelled clutter signal
can result at the output of delay line canceler
which might be mistaken for a moving target.
MTI Radar Block Diagram
▪ The high stability local oscillator of an MTI
receiver is called stalo (stable local oscillator).
▪ The IF stage is designed as a matched filter, as
is usually the case in radar.
▪ Instead of amplitude detector, there is phase
detector following the IF stage.
▪ This is a mixer like device that combines the IF
signal and reference signal from coho, so as to
produce their difference signal.
▪ This difference is doppler frequency.
MTI Radar Block Diagram
▪ The name coho stands for coherent oscillator to
signify that it is the reference signal that has the
phase of transmitter signal.
▪ Coherency with transmitted signal is obtained by
using the sum of coho and stalo as input signal to
power amplifier.
▪ Thus the transmitter frequency is sum of stalo
frequency 𝑓𝑙 and coho frequency 𝑓𝑐 .
▪ This is accomplished by the mixer shown on the
right side.
MTI Radar Block Diagram
▪ The combination of stalo and coho sometimes is called the receiver-exciter
portion of the MTI radar.
▪ Using the receiver stalo and coho to also generate the transmitter signal ensures
better stability than if the functions were performed with two different set of
oscillators.
▪ The output of the phase detector is given as the input to the delay-line canceler.
▪ The delay-line canceler acts as a high-pass filter to separate doppler shifted echo
signals of moving targets from unwanted echoes of stationary clutter.
Delay Line Cancellers
▪ The simple MTI delay line canceler is an example of a time-domain filter that
rejects stationary clutter at zero frequency.
▪ Frequency response of single delay line canceler: The signal from a target at
range 𝑅0 at the output of phase detector can be written as
𝑉1 = 𝑘 𝑠𝑖𝑛(2𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑡 − 𝜙0 )
▪ where 𝑓𝑑 = doppler frequency shift, 𝜙0 = constant phase equal to 4𝜋𝑅0 /𝜆,
𝑅0 = range at time equal to zero, 𝑘 = amplitude of signal.
▪ The signal from previous radar transmission is similar, except it is delayed by a
time 𝑇𝑝 = pulse repetition interval, and is
𝑉2 = 𝑘 𝑠𝑖𝑛(2𝜋𝑓𝑑 (𝑡 − 𝑇𝑝 ) − 𝜙0 )
Delay Line Cancellers
▪ The delay line canceler subtracts these two signals.
𝐴−𝐵 𝐴+𝐵
▪ Using 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝐴 − 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝐵 = 2 sin cos , we get
2 2
𝑇𝑝
𝑉 = 𝑉1 − 𝑉2 = 2𝑘 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝 cos 2𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑡− − 𝜙0
2
▪ The output from DLC consists of a cosine wave with same frequency 𝑓𝑑 as input,
but with an amplitude 2𝑘 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝 .
▪ Thus the amplitude of canceled video output (o/p of DLC) depends on doppler
frequency shift and pulse repetition period.
Delay Line Cancellers
▪ The frequency response function of single delay line canceler (o/p amplitude
divided by i/p amplitude, k) is then
𝐻 𝑓 = 2 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝

▪ The single delay line canceler is a filter that eliminates fixed clutter that is of
zero doppler frequency.
▪ Unfortunately, it has two other properties that can seriously limit the utility of
this simple doppler filter.
Delay Line Cancellers
▪ 1) The frequency response function also has zero response when moving targets
have doppler frequencies at prf and its harmonics.
▪ 2) The clutter spectrum at zero frequency is not a delta function of zero width,
but has a finite width so that clutter will appear in the pass band of delay line
canceler.
▪ The result is: there will be target speeds, called blind speeds, where target will
not be detected and there will be an uncanceled clutter residue that can be
interfered with the detection of moving targets.
Blind Speeds
▪ The relative velocities for which the frequency response of single DLC becomes
zero are called blind speeds. The response will be zero whenever the magnitude
of 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝 is zero, which occurs when 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝 = 0, ±𝜋, ±2𝜋, ±3𝜋, …
𝑛
▪ Therefore 𝑓𝑑 = = 𝑛𝑓𝑝 , n=0,1,2,…
𝑇𝑝

▪ This states that in addition to zero response at zero frequency, there will also be
zero response of DLC whenever the doppler frequency 𝑓𝑑 = 2𝑣𝑟 /𝜆 is a multiple
of the prf 𝑓𝑝 .
▪ The radial velocities that produce blind speeds are given as
𝑓𝑑 𝜆 𝑛𝜆 𝑛𝜆𝑓𝑝
𝑣𝑟 = 𝑣𝑛 = = , n=1,2,3,…
2 2𝑇𝑝 2
Blind Speeds
▪ 𝑣𝑟 is replaced by 𝑣𝑛 for nth blind speed.
▪ Usually only the first blind speed 𝑣1 is considered, since the others are integer
multiples of 𝑣1 .
▪ If 𝜆 is measured in meters, 𝑓𝑝 in hertz, and radial velocity in knots, the first blind
speed can be written as
𝑣1 (𝑘𝑡) = 0.97𝜆(𝑚)𝑓𝑝 (𝐻𝑧) ≈ 𝜆(𝑚)𝑓𝑝 (𝐻𝑧)
▪ Blind speeds can be a serious limitation in MTI radar since they cause some
desired moving targets to be canceled along with undesired clutter at zero
frequency.
Blind Speeds
𝑣1 (𝑘𝑡) = 0.97𝜆(𝑚)𝑓𝑝 (𝐻𝑧) ≈ 𝜆(𝑚)𝑓𝑝 (𝐻𝑧)
▪ Based on this equation there are 4 methods for reducing the detrimental effects of
blind speeds: (1st blind speed > maximum expected target velocity)
1. Operate the radar at long wavelengths (low frequencies).
2. Operate with a high pulse repetition frequency.
3. Operate with more than one pulse repetition frequency.
4. Operate with more than one RF frequency (wavelength).
▪ Combinations of 2 or more of the above are also possible to further reduce the
effect of blind speeds.
▪ Each of these 4 methods has particular advantages and limitations.
Range Resolution
Range Resolution
▪ Range resolution is the ability of radar system to distinguish between two or
more targets having same angular distance but different ranges.
▪ The smallest distance which can be discriminated by the radar detector is called
range resolution.
▪ So targets which are closer than range resolution, they are detected as one object
instead of separate objects.
▪ If we transmit a wide transmission pulse, the echo will also be wide.
▪ Hence narrower the transmission pulse, the resolution improves.
▪ So pulse width approximately determines the range resolution.
Blind Speeds
1) Operate the radar at long wavelengths (low frequencies)
▪ If we operate at long wavelengths or low frequencies,
▪ Carrier frequency of transmitted signal is very low and hence cannot be used
for long distances.
▪ Range resolution will be poor.
▪ This low frequency spectrum is crowded with other than radar services such as
broadcast FM and TV.
▪ Hence this is not usually desirable for many radar applications
Blind Speeds
2) Operate with a high pulse repetition frequency
▪ If we increase prf,
𝑐
𝑅𝑢𝑛 =
2𝑓𝑝
▪ The maximum unambiguous range will be very low and hence there will be
many range ambiguities.
▪ This is the case of pulse doppler radar which has a prf large enough to avoid
doppler ambiguities, but can have numerous range ambiguities.
Blind Speeds
3) Operate with more than one pulse repetition frequency
▪ When two or more prfs are used in radar, the blind speeds at one prf are
generally different from the blind speeds at the other prfs.
▪ Thus targets that are highly attenuated with one prf might be readily seen with
another prf.
▪ This technique is widely used for civil air traffic control.
▪ A disadvantage of a multiple-prf waveform is that multiple-time around clutter
echoes (from regions beyond max unambiguous range) are not canceled.
Blind Speeds
4) Operate with more than one RF frequency (wavelength)
▪ A radar that can operate at two or more RF frequencies can also unmask blind
speeds, but the required frequency change is often larger than that might be
possible within the usual frequency bands allocated for radar use.
▪ A limitation of multiple frequencies is the need for greater system bandwidth.
▪ In some circumstances, it might be desirable to tolerate the blind speeds rather
than accept the limitations of these methods.
▪ So there is no single solution best for all cases.
▪ The engineer has to decide which of these limitations can be accepted in any
particular application.
Clutter
▪ Echo from stationary target – Motive for using MTI filter.
▪ In spectral domain the moving target and clutter can be easily separated because
ideally clutter spectrum is a delta function at 𝑓 = 0.
▪ But in reality, clutter is mathematically modeled as a random process and its PSD
is concentrated near 𝑓 = 0.
▪ Standard deviation ≠ 0.

▪ But a pulse radar is sampling the returned echo at prf 𝑓𝑝

Clutter
Clutter Attenuation
▪ The other limitation of single delay line canceler is insufficient attenuation of
clutter that results from finite width of the clutter spectrum.
▪ The single delay line canceler has to cancel stationary clutter with zero doppler
shift.
▪ However in reality, the clutter spectrum has a finite width due to internal motions
of the clutter, instabilities of stalo and coho, other imperfections of radar and its
signal processor.
▪ Clutter power spectral density is represented by a Gaussian function as
Clutter Attenuation

▪ where 𝑊0 = peak value of clutter power spectral density, at f = 0

▪ 𝜎𝑐 = standard deviation of clutter spectrum in hertz
▪ 𝜎𝑣 = standard deviation of clutter spectrum in meters/second, 𝜎𝑐 = 2𝜎𝑣 /𝜆
▪ The advantage of using 𝜎𝑣 is that it is independent of frequency, whereas 𝜎𝑐 is in
hertz and depends on radar frequency.
Clutter Attenuation

▪ The greater the standard deviation 𝜎𝑐 , the greater the amount of clutter that will
be passed by the filter.
▪ The clutter attenuation provided by a single delay line canceler is
Clutter Attenuation
▪ The clutter attenuation provided by a single delay line canceler is not sufficient
for most MTI radar applications.
▪ If a second delay line canceler is placed in cascade, the frequency response of the
two filters is the square of the single delay line canceler, as
𝐻 𝑓 = 4 𝑠𝑖𝑛2 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝
▪ Less clutter spectrum is included within the frequency spectrum of the double
delay line canceler, hence it attenuates more clutter.
MTI Improvement Factor
▪ The signal-to-clutter ratio at the output of the clutter filter divided by the signal-
to-clutter ratio at the input of the clutter filter, averaged uniformly over all target
radial velocities of interest.

▪ The vertical line on the right indicates that the average is taken with respect to
doppler frequency 𝑓𝑑 .
▪ The improvement factor can be expressed as the clutter attenuation (CA=Cin/Cout )
times the average filter gain.
MTI Improvement Factor
▪ The average gain is determined from frequency response H(f) and is usually small
compared to CA.
▪ The average gain for a single delay-line canceler is 2 and for double delay-line
canceler is 6.
▪ The general expression for improvement factor for a canceler with n-delay line
cancelers in cascade is
Sub-Clutter Visibility (SCV)
▪ Sub-clutter visibility (SCV) describes the radar’s ability to detect non-stationary
targets embedded in a strong clutter background, for some probabilities of
detection and false alarm.
▪ For example, a radar with 10 dB sub-clutter visibility will be able to detect
moving targets whose returns are ten times smaller than those of clutter.
▪ The sub-clutter visibility is expressed as the ratio of the improvement factor to the
minimum MTI output SCR required for proper detection for a given probability
of detection.
𝐼𝑓
𝑆𝐶𝑉 =
(𝑆𝐶𝑅)𝑜𝑢𝑡
▪ where SCR = Signal-to-Clutter Ratio
Double Delay Line Canceler

Fig: Double Delay Line Canceler

Fig: Three Pulse Canceler (Both have same frequency response)

Transversal Filter

▪ Three pulse canceler is an example of a transversal filter. Its general form with n
delay lines is shown in fig. The weights wi are applied to N = n+1 pulses and
then combined in summer or adder.
Numerical
▪ A CW radar has a wavelength of 3 cm. A target at a range of 350 Km is
approaching the radar with a radial velocity of 250 m/s. Calculate Doppler
frequency shift.

▪ An MTI radar is operating at 1.25 GHz. The prf of the radar transmitter is 340 Hz. It
detects a rain storm in its path approaching with a relative velocity of 12 m/s. The radar
employs a single delay line canceler. Find frequency response of single DLC, maximum
unambiguous range and first blind speed.
Numerical
▪ A CW radar has a wavelength of 3 cm. A target at a range of 350 Km is
approaching the radar with a radial velocity of 250 m/s. Calculate Doppler
frequency shift.
𝜆 = 3𝑐𝑚 = 0.03 𝑚

𝑣𝑟 = 250 𝑚/𝑠

𝑓𝑑 = ?
Numerical
▪ A CW radar has a wavelength of 3 cm. A target at a range of 350 Km is
approaching the radar with a radial velocity of 250 m/s. Calculate Doppler
frequency shift.
𝜆 = 3𝑐𝑚 = 0.03 𝑚

𝑣𝑟 = 250 𝑚/𝑠

2𝑣𝑟 2 × 250
𝑓𝑑 = = = 16.67𝐾𝐻𝑧
𝜆 0.03
Numerical
▪ An MTI radar is operating at 1.25 GHz. The prf of the radar transmitter is 340 Hz. It
detects a rain storm in its path approaching with a relative velocity of 12 m/s. The radar
employs a single delay line canceler. Find frequency response of single DLC, maximum
unambiguous range and first blind speed.
𝑓 = 1.25 × 109 𝐻𝑧
𝑓𝑝 = 340 𝐻𝑧
𝑣𝑟 = 12 𝑚/𝑠

𝐻 𝑓 =?
𝑅𝑢𝑛 =?
𝑣1 =?
Numerical
▪ An MTI radar is operating at 1.25 GHz. The prf of the radar transmitter is 340 Hz. It
detects a rain storm in its path approaching with a relative velocity of 12 m/s. The radar
employs a single delay line canceler. Find frequency response of single DLC, maximum
unambiguous range and first blind speed.
𝑐 3 × 108
𝜆= = 9
= 0.24 𝑚
𝑓 1.25 × 10
𝑓𝑝 = 340 𝐻𝑧
𝑣𝑟 = 12 𝑚/𝑠
2𝑣𝑟 2 × 12
𝑓𝑑 = = = 100 𝐻𝑧
𝜆 0.24
100
𝐻 𝑓 = 2 𝑠𝑖𝑛 𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑇𝑝 = 2 sin 𝜋 × = 2 × 0.798
340
Numerical
▪ An MTI radar is operating at 1.25 GHz. The prf of the radar transmitter is 340 Hz. It
detects a rain storm in its path approaching with a relative velocity of 12 m/s. The radar
employs a single delay line canceler. Find frequency response of single DLC, maximum
unambiguous range and first blind speed.
𝑐 3 × 108
𝑅𝑢𝑛 = = = 441. 176 𝐾𝑚
2𝑓𝑝 2 × 340

𝜆𝑓𝑝 0.24 × 340

𝑣1 = = = 40.8 𝑚/𝑠
2 2
Staggered Pulse Repetition Frequencies
▪ The use of multiple waveforms with different prfs allows the detection of moving
targets that would otherwise be eliminated with a constant prf waveform if their
radial velocities were at a blind speed.
Staggered Pulse Repetition Frequencies
▪ At prf 𝑓1 , blind speeds occur when doppler frequency is 𝑓1 , 2𝑓1 and other integer
multiples.
▪ With 𝑓2 = 2𝑓1 /3, blind speeds occur when the doppler frequency equals 𝑓2 , 2𝑓2
or 3𝑓2 .
▪ The targets that are not detectable because of a blind speed in frequency response
of one prf, will be detectable with the other prf.
▪ A target is lost on both prfs, when blind speeds occur simultaneously, as when
3𝑓2 = 2𝑓1 .
▪ Thus the first blind speed at prf 𝑓1 has been doubled in this example.
▪ So using more than one prf reduces the effect of blind speeds.
Staggered Pulse Repetition Frequencies
▪ There are several methods for employing multiple prfs to avoid losing target
echoes due to blind speeds.
▪ The prfs can be changed (1) scan to scan, (2) dwell to dwell, or (3) pulse to pulse
(staggered prf).
▪ A dwell is usually the time it takes to scan the antenna beam over beamwidth or
some fraction of beamwidth.
▪ A dwell can be the time to scan one half-beamwidth, if there are only two prfs.
Staggered prfs
▪ An example of 4 intervals of a staggered prf waveform is shown here. The 4
interval sequence is then repeated.

▪ In pulse to pulse staggered prfs, the time between pulses is an interval or a period.
▪ Multiple staggered prfs can be processed with a transversal filter.
▪ The filter samples the doppler frequency at non-uniform times rather than the
uniformly spaced time samples when the prf is constant.
▪ The frequency response of this filter is
Staggered prfs
▪ The selection of n + 1 weights wi and the n pulse repetition periods Ti is generally
constrained by several design factors:
1. The minimum period should not result in range ambiguities.
2. The sequence of the periods should be selected so as not to stress the
transmitter by employing a widely varying duty cycle or a duty cycle for
which the transmitter is not designed.
3. The maximum period should not be too long since any range beyond the
maximum unambiguous range represents “dead time” to radar.
Staggered prfs
▪ The selection of n + 1 weights wi and the n pulse repetition periods Ti is generally
constrained by several design factors:
4. The response in filter stop band should produce the required MTI
improvement factor for detection of targets in clutter.
5. The deepest null in the passband should not be excessive. Usually the deepest
null occurs at a frequency equal to the inverse of the average period.
6. The variation (or ripple) of the response over the passband should be
minimized and relatively uniform.
All these conditions cannot be satisfied simultaneously. So, design of a staggered
prf and its processing is often a compromise.
Staggered prfs
▪ Although staggered prfs remove blind speeds that would have been obtained with
a constant prf, there will eventually be a new blind speed that occurs when the N
prfs have the following relationship
𝑛1 𝑓1 = 𝑛2 𝑓2 = ⋯ = 𝑛𝑁 𝑓𝑁 = 𝑓𝑝 𝑠𝑡
▪ where 𝑛1 , 𝑛2 , … 𝑛𝑁 are relatively prime integers (with no common divisor other
than 1).
𝜆𝑓𝑝
▪ The first blind speed with staggered prf will be 𝑣1 𝑠𝑡 = 𝑠𝑡
2
▪ The first blind speed with constant prf by considering the average period is
𝜆𝑓𝑝
𝑎𝑣
𝑣1 𝑎𝑣 =
2
Staggered prfs
▪ The average period is
𝑇1 +𝑇2 + ⋯ + 𝑇𝑁
𝑇𝑎𝑣 =
𝑁
▪ where 𝑇𝑖 = 1/𝑓𝑖 and 𝑓𝑝 𝑎𝑣 = 1/𝑇𝑎𝑣
𝑣1 𝑠𝑡 𝑛1 +𝑛2 + ⋯ + 𝑛𝑁
=
𝑣1 𝑎𝑣 𝑁
▪ Average prf can also be used instead of average period as
𝑓𝑝1 +𝑓𝑝2 + ⋯ + 𝑓𝑝𝑁
𝑓𝑝 𝑎𝑣 =
𝑁
Numerical
▪ A certain pulse radar uses two prf’s with a stagger ratio of 63/64. If first prf is 500
Hz, compute the blind speeds for both prf’s and also for the resultant composite
prf. Assume radar wavelength to be 3 cm.
For prf staggering, 𝑛1 𝑓𝑝1 = 𝑛2 𝑓𝑝2
𝑛1 63
𝑓𝑝2 = 𝑓𝑝1 = × 500 = 492.2 𝐻𝑧
𝑛2 64
First blind speed for prf 1 is
𝜆𝑓𝑝1 0.03 × 500
𝑣𝑏1 = = = 7.5 𝑚/𝑠
2 2
𝜆𝑓𝑝2 0.03 × 492.2
𝑣𝑏2 = = = 7.38 𝑚/𝑠
2 2
Numerical
▪ A certain pulse radar uses two prf’s with a stagger ratio of 63/64. If first prf is 500
Hz, compute the blind speeds for both prf’s and also for the resultant composite
prf. Assume radar wavelength to be 3 cm.
𝑓𝑝1 +𝑓𝑝2
Average constant prf, 𝑓𝑝 = = 496.1 𝐻𝑧
𝑎𝑣 2
𝜆𝑓𝑝 0.03×496.1
𝑎𝑣
First blind speed for prf 𝑓𝑝 𝑎𝑣 is 𝑣𝑏 𝑎𝑣 = = = 7.44 𝑚/𝑠
2 2

𝑛1 +𝑛2 63+64
For staggered prf, first blind speed is 𝑣𝑏 𝑠𝑡 = 𝑣𝑏 𝑎𝑣 = × 7.44
2 2
= 472.44 𝑚/𝑠
Numerical
▪ A pulse radar with MTI filter operates with a STALO at 5.535 GHz and a COHO
of 320 MHz. The radar tracks a target which is moving radially outbound at 150
Kmph. Find the
a) Transmit frequency
b) Received frequency
c) IF frequency
d) Frequency at input of DLC
Numerical
▪ Transmit frequency
𝑓𝑇 = 𝑓𝑙 + 𝑓𝑐 = 5.535 + 0.32𝐺𝐻𝑧 = 5.855 𝐺𝐻𝑧
▪ Received frequency, 𝑓𝑅 = 𝑓𝑙 + 𝑓𝑐 ± 𝑓𝑑
2𝑣𝑟 2𝑣𝑟 𝑓𝑇
𝑓𝑑 = =
𝜆 𝑐
2×150×103 /3600×5.855×109
=
3×108
= 1.626 KHz
▪ 𝑓𝑅 = 𝑓𝑇 − 𝑓𝑑 = 5.855 − 0.000001626 𝐺𝐻𝑧
= 5.854998374 GHz
Numerical
▪ IF frequency = 𝑓𝑅 − 𝑓𝑙
= 5.854998374 GHz - 5.535 GHz
= 319.998374 MHz

▪ Frequency at input of DLC, = 𝑓𝐼𝐹 − 𝑓𝑐

= 319.998374 MHz – 320 MHz
= − 1.626 KHz
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ A doppler filter bank is a set of contiguous filters for detecting targets as shown in
fig.

▪ MTI doppler filter bank with N = 8. N is the number of pulses processed and the
number of filters generated, T is pulse repetition period.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ A filter bank has several advantages over single filters:
▪ Multiple moving targets can be separated from one another in a filter bank.
▪ This can be particularly important when one of the echo signals is from undesired
moving clutter; such as rain storm or birds with non-zero doppler shift.
▪ When the clutter and target echo signal appear in different doppler filters, the
clutter echo need not interfere with the detection of the desired moving target.
▪ A measure of target’s radial velocity can be obtained. It might be ambiguous, but
a change in the prf can resolve the ambiguity in the radial velocity, just as
changing prf can resolve range ambiguities.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ The narrowband doppler filters exclude more noise than the MTI delay line
cancelers and provide coherent integration.
▪ The price paid for these advantages is
▪ greater complexity,
▪ difficulty in achieving filters with low enough side lobes to reduce clutter, and
▪ the need for significant number of pulses to produce desirable filter characteristics
▪ The basic method for achieving a doppler filter bank is to employ the transversal
filter with complex weights rather than real weights.
▪ Complex weights mean that phase shifts as well as amplitude weights are
employed.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ Consider a transversal filter with N pulses (N taps) and N-1 delay lines.
▪ With proper weights this will form N contiguous filters covering the frequency
range from 0 to 𝑓𝑝 .
▪ The time delay between each tap
of transversal filter is T = 1/𝑓𝑝 .
▪ There will be N parallel outputs at
each of the N taps, one for each filter
which are not shown in this simple fig.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ The weights 𝑤𝑖,𝑘 for each of N taps, with k outputs at each tap can be expresses
as
𝑤𝑖,𝑘 = 𝑒 𝑗[2𝜋 𝑖−1 𝑘/𝑁]
▪ where i = 1,2, . . . , N represents the N taps and k is the index from 0 to N-1 that
corresponds to different set of N weights, each for different filter.
▪ In this example, the amplitude is the same at each tap, only the phases are
different.
▪ The N filters generated by the index k constitute filter bank.
▪ If there are 8 pulses available to generate 8 filters, the phase weights 𝑤𝑖,0 for the
filter k = 0 are all of zero phase.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ For the next filter, k = 1 the phase weights 𝑤𝑖,1 will be 0, 45, 90, 135, 180, 225,
270 and 315 degrees, respectively.
▪ The phase weights for the higher filters (k = 2 to 7) are same as those for k = 1,
but multiplied by k, modulo 360.
▪ The impulse response of the transversal filter with weights is given by
𝑁

ℎ𝑘 𝑡 = ෍ 𝛿 𝑡 − 𝑖 − 1 𝑇 𝑒 𝑗[2𝜋 𝑖−1 𝑘/𝑁]

𝑖=1
Doppler Filter Banks
𝑁

ℎ𝑘 𝑡 = ෍ 𝛿 𝑡 − 𝑖 − 1 𝑇 𝑒 𝑗[2𝜋 𝑖−1 𝑘/𝑁]

𝑖=1
▪ The frequency response function is given by
𝑁

𝐻𝑘 𝑓 = ෍ 𝑒 −𝑗[2𝜋𝑓 𝑖−1 𝑇] 𝑒 𝑗[2𝜋 𝑖−1 𝑘/𝑁]

𝑖=1
𝑁

𝐻𝑘 𝑓 = ෍ 𝑒 −𝑗2𝜋 𝑖−1 [𝑓𝑇−𝑘/𝑁]

𝑖=1
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ The magnitude of the frequency response function is the amplitude pass band
characteristics of the filter, which is

▪ The width of the main response (spacing between the firs pair of zeros) is 2/NT.
▪ The half power width is approximately 0.9/NT.
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ The side lobes in doppler filter bank are not included for clarity.
▪ But there will be side lobes and can limit the amount of clutter attenuation.
▪ The peak response occurs when 𝜋(𝑓𝑇 − 𝑘/𝑁) = 0, 𝜋, 2𝜋, …
𝑘 1 𝑘 2 𝑘
▪ 𝑓= , + , + ,…
𝑁𝑇 𝑇 𝑁𝑇 𝑇 𝑁𝑇
▪ When k = 0, the peak response occurs at f = 0, 1/T, 2/T,…
▪ This defines a filter with peak response at zero frequency, at the prf (𝑓𝑝 =1/T),
and at harmonics of the prf.
▪ Thus k = 0 filter corresponds to the clutter spectrum and does not reject clutter as
done by the other N-1 filters.
▪ When k = 1, the peak response occurs at f = 1/NT, 1/T+1/NT, 2/T+1/NT,…
Doppler Filter Banks
▪ Hence each value of k corresponds to one of the N separate doppler filters.
▪ Together N filters cover the frequency region from 0 to 𝑓𝑝 =1/T or (-𝑓𝑝 /2 to 𝑓𝑝 /2).
▪ In this example where amplitude weights at each tap are all the same, the first
nulls of each filter are at the peaks of the adjacent filters.
▪ The generation of N filters from the output of N taps of a transversal filter
requires a total of (N-1)2 digital multiplications.
▪ This process is equivalent to that of a discrete Fourier transform.
▪ Hence Fast Fourier transform can be used to speed up the computations if the
value of N is some power of 2.
Reducing the Filter Side lobes
▪ The side lobes can be reduced by employing amplitude weights in addition to
phase weights.
▪ To further reduce the clutter, especially in those filters close to zero frequency, a
relatively simple delay line canceler such as three-pulse canceler can be placed
ahead of the filter bank.
▪ Limitations:
▪ In addition to the difficulty in obtaining low filter side lobes, the doppler filter bank is
more complex than the simple delay line canceler.
▪ It generally requires more pulses for good performance.
Digital MTI Processing
▪ Most of the basic theoretical aspects of MTI filter design were formulated when
the delay lines were analog devices.
▪ Sophisticated MTI doppler filters were difficult to implement with analog
methods, so it was rare for an MTI radar to employ more than two analog delay
lines in a delay line canceler.
▪ But the rapid development of digital technology, allowed the delays to be
obtained by storing digital words in a memory for whatever length of time was
required.
▪ Digital doppler filters with many delay lines are now practical so that
sophisticated filters can be readily obtained when a large number of pulses are
available for processing.
Digital MTI Processing
The advantages offered by digital MTI processing include:
▪ Compensation for “blind phases,” which can cause a loss due to the difference in
phase between the echo signal and the MTI reference signal. This is achieved by
the use of I (in-phase) and Q (quadrature) processing which was not convenient
to implement with analog methods.
▪ Greater dynamic range can be obtained.
▪ Unwanted changes in the delay times of analog delay lines due to temperature
changes are eliminated by accurate timing of digital methods.
▪ There is no problem in making the delay time in digital memory synchronous
with the radar’s prf, something difficult to do with analog delay lines.
Digital MTI Processing
The advantages offered by digital MTI processing include:
▪ The flexibility offered by digital methods allows signal processors to be readily
obtained with many different filter characteristics. Digital processors can be
made re-programmable.
▪ Digital MTI is more stable and reliable than analog MTI, and requires less
adjustments during operation in the field.
Blind Phases, I and Q channels
▪ MTI radar has a single phase detector and channel.
▪ With single phase detector and processing channel, there is a loss when doppler
shifted signal is not sampled at +ve and –ve peaks of sine wave.
▪ When the phase between the doppler signal and the sampling at prf results in a
loss, it is called blind phase.
▪ A blind phase is different from the blind speed.
▪ A blind speed occurs when the sampling pulse appears at the same point in the
doppler cycle at each sampling time.
Blind Phases, I and Q channels
(a) Example of blind speed. Target’s doppler
frequency is equal to prf.

(b) Example of blind phase in I channel.

(c) Example of blind phase in Q channel.

Blind Phases, I and Q channels
▪ The sampled signals in this example are of same amplitude and when pulse 𝑎2 is
subtracted from pulse 𝑎1 , the result is zero.
▪ When pulse 𝑎3 is subtracted from 𝑎2 , there is a finite output.
▪ Hence in this particular case, half of the signal energy is lost.
▪ The other half of signal energy can be recovered if a 2nd identical processing
channel is used and there is a 900 phase change of coho (reference) signal that is
applied to its phase detector.
▪ The second channel is called Q (quadrature) channel. The original channel is
called I (in-phase) channel.
▪ Those pulse pairs that had zero output in the I channel now have a finite residue
in the Q channel.
Blind Phases, I and Q channels
▪ Likewise those pulse pairs which had finite residue in the I channel now have a
zero output in the Q channel.
▪ What was lost in the I channel is recovered in Q channel and vice versa.
▪ The combination of I and Q channels results in a uniform output with no loss.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ The block diagram of digital MTI signal processor with I and Q channels is
shown in figure.
▪ The signal from IF amplifier is split into two channels.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ The phase detectors in each channel extract the doppler shifted signal.
▪ In the I channel the doppler signal is represented as 𝐴𝑑 𝑐𝑜𝑠 2𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑡 + 𝜙0 .
▪ In the Q channel the doppler signal is represented as 𝐴𝑑 𝑠𝑖𝑛 2𝜋𝑓𝑑 𝑡 + 𝜙0 .
▪ The signals are then digitized by the A/D converter.
▪ A sample and hold circuit usually is needed ahead of the A/D converter for more
effective digitizing.
▪ Sample and hold is often on the same chip as the A/D converter.
▪ The digital words are stored in a digital memory for the required delay time and
are processed with a suitable algorithm to provide the desired doppler filtering.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ The magnitude of the doppler signal is obtained by taking the square root of
I2+Q2 .
▪ Sometimes for simplicity, the sum of the magnitudes of the two channels,
𝐼 + 𝑄 , is taken or the “greater of” the two channels might be used instead.
▪ The I and Q processor has a square-law detector characteristic.
▪ A linear-law detector can be approximated by the greater of 𝐼 + 𝑄 /2 or
𝑄 + 𝐼 /2.
▪ If required, the combined output can be converted to an analog signal by a D/A
converter for display.
▪ Otherwise the digital output might be subject to further processing.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ There are several methods for implementing A/D converter, depending on the
speed and number of bits required.
▪ Since there are two channels (I and Q), sampling in each can be at one-half the
nyquist rate, which generally makes the implementation of A/D converters
simpler.
▪ The number of quantization levels in A/D converter is generally given as 2N.
▪ D/A converters are usually easier to achieve than A/D converters of the same
resolution.
▪ The output of IF amplifier is usually made to limit at a level consistent with the
MTI improvement factor and the full scale range of A/D converter.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ The IF portion of the receiver is then a linear-limiting amplifier.
▪ The signal should not be allowed to exceed the full scale range of A/D converter,
since the output would then be degraded.
Limitation on improvement factor due to A/D converter:
▪ All analog signals that lie within the same quantization step of A/D converter are
represented by the same digital word.
▪ Since the rms value of noise accompanying the signal is usually greater than the
quantization step of A/D converter, the digital word can slightly change from
pulse to pulse in a noise like manner.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ Thus quantization of the analog signal results in noise called quantization noise,
which can limit the MTI improvement factor.
▪ The limitation to the improvement factor due to quantization noise is given as
𝐼𝑑 = 20𝑙𝑜𝑔 2𝑁 − 1 0.75
▪ where N = number of bits. This is approximately 6 dB per bit.
▪ Thus a 10-bit A/D converter theoretically limits the improvement factor to about
60 dB.
▪ Dynamic Range is the maximum signal to noise ratio that can be handled by an
A/D converter without saturation.
▪ The noise level relative to the quantization step affects the dynamic range.
Digital MTI Signal Processor
▪ The available dynamic range (power ratio) is given as
Dynamic range = 22𝑁−3 /𝑘 2
▪ where N = number of bits in A/D converter, and k = rms noise level divided by
the quantization level.
▪ The larger k is, the less the dynamic range.
▪ Other Limitations: In practical conditions, there will be errors and reduced
performance due to
▪ Other than 900 phase difference between I and Q reference signals.
▪ Gain and phase imbalance in two channels.
▪ Timing jitter in sample-and-hold circuits, and non linearity in A/D.
Moving Target Detector
▪ It is an improved version of MTI radar.
▪ The MTD is an example of an MTI processing system to produce improved
detection of moving targets in clutter.
▪ Uses digital techniques.
▪ It was originally developed by MIT Lincoln Laboratory for Airport Surveillance
Radar (ASR) for control of local air traffic in the presence of clutter.
The original MTD included the following:
▪ An 8-pulse FFT digital filter bank with 8 filters, preceded by a 3-pulse delay line
canceler.
Moving Target Detector
▪ Frequency domain weighting to reduce the doppler filter side lobes for better
clutter attenuation.
▪ Alternate prfs to eliminate blind speeds and to unmask aircraft echoes from
weather clutter.
▪ Adaptive thresholds to take advantage of the non-uniform nature of clutter.
▪ Clutter map to detect crossing targets with zero radial velocity that would
otherwise be canceled by an ordinary MTI.
Coherent Processing Interval (CPI)
▪ Multiple prf is used, but 10 pulses are transmitted at a constant prf.
▪ On the receive, the interval of these 10 pulses is called a CPI.
▪ After these 10 pulses, prf is changed to eliminate blind speeds and to unmask
moving targets from moving weather clutter like clouds.
▪ Constant prf with in CPI is used to eliminate second time around clutter echoes
that would normally degrade a conventional MTI using pulse to pulse stagger of
prf.
Moving Target Detector
Moving Target Detector
3-pulse canceler
▪ The 3-pulse canceler reduces the dynamic range of the signals which the doppler
filter bank has to handle.
▪ It cancels the stationary clutter in the doppler filters.
▪ It acts like double delay line canceler.
8-pulse doppler filter bank
▪ The doppler filter bank separates moving targets from moving weather clutter.
▪ When moving clutter (rain storm, birds) and target echo appear in different doppler
filters, the clutter echo will not interfere with detection of desired moving targets.
▪ So the moving clutter echo can be easily eliminated.
Moving Target Detector
Weighting and Magnitude
▪ Doppler filter will have some side lobes and can limit the amount of clutter
attenuation.
▪ The outputs of doppler filter bank are weighted to reduce the effect of side
lobes.
▪ The side lobes are reduced by subtracting from output of each filter ¼ the sum
of the two adjacent filters.
▪ If A, B, C represent un-weighted outputs of 3 continuous filters, then the weight
applied to filter B is B – (A/4 + C/4).
▪ The magnitude is the operation 𝐼 2 + 𝑄2 1/2 .
Moving Target Detector
Zero Velocity Filter
▪ A conventional MTI radar also eliminates aircrafts moving on a crossing trajectory
(one perpendicular to the radar line of sight) which causes aircraft’s radial velocity
to be zero.
▪ Zero velocity filter is used to produce the clutter map.
Clutter Map
▪ MTD uses large cross section of these targets to detect them.
▪ It uses clutter map that stores the magnitude of clutter echoes in a digital memory.
▪ The clutter map establishes the threshold for detecting those targets which produce
zero radial velocity.
Moving Target Detector
Adaptive Thresholds
▪ To allow detection of moving targets in stationary and moving clutters.
▪ The threshold is continuously adapted to the local environment.
Performance
▪ The improvement factor of original MTD was about 45 dB, which was said to
be a 20 dB increase over conventional 3 pulse MTI radar.
▪ MTD achieved better clutter rejection at zero velocity and at blind speeds.
▪ MTD has proven to be an important model for the design of radars for detecting
moving targets in stationary as well as moving clutter.
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ Degradation in the performance of MTI radars are caused by
1. Antenna scanning modulation
2. Internal fluctuations of clutter
3. Equipment instabilities
4. Limiting
▪ These limitations to MTI performance will cause the clutter spectrum to widen.
▪ More clutter energy is then passed by the doppler filter, which lowers the
improvement factor.
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ If the clutter power spectral density can be expressed as a Gaussian function
with a standard deviation 𝜎𝑐 in Hz, it can be represented as

▪ where 𝑊0 is the peak value of the clutter power spectral density at f = 0.

▪ Clutter standard deviation is sometimes written in terms of radial velocity, in
meters/second, and denoted as 𝜎𝑣 . The two are related by 𝜎𝑐 = 2𝜎𝑣 /𝜆.
▪ If the MTI filter has a frequency response H(f), the clutter attenuation is
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ The improvement factor is found by multiplying the clutter attenuation and the
average gain of the filter.
▪ The general expression for improvement factor with n-delay line cancelers in
cascade is given by

▪ If there are N different effects that contribute to the widening of clutter

spectrum, and if each is Gaussian and independent of one another, the overall
standard deviation is
▪ where subscripts indicate the various effects, such as oscillator stability,
quantization of A/D converter, antenna scanning modulation etc
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ The overall improvement factor when multiple effects contribute to the total is
given by

▪ where 𝐼𝑖 represents the limit on the improvement factors due to each effect.
1. Antenna Scanning Modulation
▪ The duration of the echo signal received from a target or a clutter as the antenna
of a pulse radar scans past is given by 𝑡0 = 𝑛/𝑓𝑝 = 𝜃𝐵 /𝜃𝑆 , where 𝑛 = number of
pulses received, 𝜃𝐵 = antenna beamwidth, 𝜃𝑆 = antenna scanning rate in degrees
per second.
▪ The frequency spectrum has a bandwidth inversely proportional to the time
duration 𝑡0 .
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ Consequently even if clutter scatterers are perfectly stationary and there is no
instabilities in radar equipment, there will still be a finite spread due to finite
duration of the echo signal.
▪ This limitation has been called antenna scanning modulation, but it is basically
due to finite time on target.
▪ The longer the time on target, the less will be the spread in the clutter spectrum.
2. Internal fluctuations of clutter
▪ Echoes from mountains, rocks, buildings, water towers can be considered
stationary.
▪ Echoes from sea, rain, trees are not stationary.
Limitations to MTI Performance
▪ The amplitude and phase fluctuations of windblown trees and vegetation can
result in a widened frequency spectrum of clutter echo that can be a limitation
on the achievable MTI improvement factor.
3. System Instabilities
▪ Changes in amplitude, frequency, phase of the stalo and coho,
▪ Changes in the pulse-to-pulse characteristics of transmitted signal, or
▪ Errors in the timing can result in uncanceled clutter echoes, and cause a limit to
the improvement factor that can be achieved.
Limitations to MTI Performance
4. Limiting in MTI Radar
▪ Clutter echoes often can be large enough to saturate the radar receiver, obscure
target echoes on display, and cause false alarms.
▪ Saturation of the receiver by clutter echoes also results in a spreading of clutter
spectrum that reduces the improvement factor.
▪ If the receiver is of large enough dynamic range, and there are sufficient bits in
the A/D converter, and if the improvement factor is large enough to make
uncancelled clutter residue smaller than receiver noise, there will be no limiting.
▪ Large dynamic range and cancellation of all the large clutter, however are not
usual.
Limitations to MTI Performance
4. Limiting in MTI Radar
▪ A limiter in the MTI receiver is used to reduce the clutter to the level of receiver
noise.
▪ The limiter should be set above receiver noise by an amount equal to the
improvement factor.
▪ If it is less than this amount, the improvement factor will not be as predicted
when the receiver is linear.
Limitations to MTI Performance
Clutter Map
▪ With improvements in digital memories, it became practical to employ digital
clutter maps to establish thresholds based on the clutter echo in each radar
resolution cell.
▪ The use of a clutter map avoids the problems of a limiter in an MTI radar, but
introduces some limitations of its own.
Numerical
▪ What is the highest frequency that a radar can be operated at if it is required to
have a maximum unambiguous range of 300 Km and no blind speed for targets
with velocity up to 990 m/s ?
𝑐
𝑅𝑢𝑛 =
2𝑓𝑝
𝜆𝑓𝑝
𝑣1 =
2
Numerical
▪ What is the highest frequency that a radar can be operated at if it is required to have a
maximum unambiguous range of 300 Km and no blind speed for targets with velocity up
to 990 m/s ?
𝑐
𝑅𝑢𝑛 =
2𝑓𝑝
𝑐
𝑓𝑝 = =
2𝑅𝑢𝑛
𝜆𝑓𝑝
𝑣1 =
2
2𝑣1
𝜆= =
𝑓𝑝
𝑐
𝑓𝑚𝑎𝑥 = =
𝜆
Numerical
▪ What is the highest frequency that a radar can be operated at if it is required to have a
maximum unambiguous range of 300 Km and no blind speed for targets with velocity up
to 990 m/s ?
𝑐
𝑅𝑢𝑛 =
2𝑓𝑝
𝑐 3 × 108
𝑓𝑝 = = 3
= 500 𝐻𝑧
2𝑅𝑢𝑛 2 × 300 × 10
𝜆𝑓𝑝
𝑣1 =
2
2𝑣1 2 × 990
𝜆= = = 3.96𝑚
𝑓𝑝 500
𝑐 3 × 108
𝑓𝑚𝑎𝑥 = = = 75.76 𝑀𝐻𝑍
𝜆 3.96