100-GHz FMCW radar front-end for ISAR and 3D imaging

This paper presents the design of a 100-GHz imaging radar system with operating bandwidth of 9 GHz and, thus, a theoretical range resolution below 2 cm. The high-resolution FMCW radar consists of a front-end of commercial components (COTS) operating at frequencies up to 100 GHz. Different technologies are involved in this development such as digital signal generation, microstrip designed circuits or waveguide components. An experimental trial has been performed. Results show that the effective range resolution is better than 3.1 cm, without resorting to any technique for compensation of amplitude non-linearities of the transmitted waveform.