Comb Filters for Pulsed Radar Use

This paper presents a discussion of the concepts involved in the use of "comb" filters for signal-to-noise improvement in pulsed radar systems. A "comb" filter is one whose frequency spectrum consists of a number of equi-spaced elements resembling the tines of a comb. Consideration is given to the characteristics of the frequency spectra arising from sequences of pulses varying in number from one to infinity. These results indicate that the use of comb filters may be feasible in most cases. Hence, a study is made of the use of three different types of filters to determine their effect on the signal-to-noise ratio. These filters range from the simplest type of uniform filters to the North type of matched filter. The relative merits of these filters are determined in terms of improvement in signal-to-noise ratio.