Optically controlled serially fed phased array radar

We have developed and tested a new optically controlled serially fed system suitable for phased array radar applications. This system uses a serial-feed concept that represents a new departure, in radar applications, that will yield a major simplification in both optical and microwave components. Unlike many systems, which use a parallel approach, our system with both phase and true time delays requires but a single tunable laser, modulator and time delay element.