Superresolution for scanning antenna

The MUSIC algorithm has been used widely in radar applications with spatially distributed sensor arrays. In those applications, the algorithm depends on the phase relations of the returned signal at different target pointing angles. Accordingly, many people believe that with a single narrow-beam antenna that is step-scanned in angle, the MUSIC algorithm cannot be used to superresolve target positions within the main beam, because there is no phase shift due to the scanning of the beam. This paper presents the application of the MUSIC algorithm to a scanning antenna that generates a nonuniform sensor vector. We call this application Scan MUSIC (SMUSIC). The simulation results with the SMUSIC algorithm for the spatial resolution of closely-spaced targets with a stepped-scan radar in the presence of Gaussian distributed noise are presented.