Some phased array systems and technologies in AMS

This paper is a follow-on of [B. Palumbo, October 1996] that was presented at 1996 IEEE Intl. Symposium on Phased Array Systems and Technology. That paper reported the development of phased array technology in Italy. The focus of this paper is mainly on some radar for air defence that Alenia Marconi Systems SpA (the Italian part of AMS, formerly Alenia SpA) has been developed. These are: RAT 31 DL tri-dimensional long-range radar at L-band, and EMPAR phase 2 for PAAMS (Principal Anti Air Missile System) and FSAF. Considerations on future evolution of these products are also included. The Company is involved in other products as, for instance, the MEADS (Medium Extended Air Defence System): see [W.A. Kuhn et al., October 2003] presented at this Conference. Phased-array technology has been developed in the Company, both Italy and UK branches, since decades, see for instance [A. Farina and G. Galati, 1988] and [E. Giaccari and C.A. Penazzi, 1989]. This technology is the backbone of new radar systems for land and ship borne air defence applications. The 3D and fully phased-array radar are being upgraded to incorporate also the BMD (Ballistic Missile Defence) capability [S. Sabatini and M. Tarantino]. The paper is organised as follows. Section 1 discusses the system rationale and scanning techniques. Section 2 focuses on the RAT 31DL product with an overview of the antenna architecture and technology for the transmitter-receiver modules (TRMs). EMPAR programs are summarised in Section 3. Details on EMPAR-phase 2 are reported in Section 4, while Section 5 illustrates the evolution towards new products. Concluding remarks and references close the paper.