Stepped Frequency Radar with Broadband Signal Generation by Period One Laser Dynamics

We propose a stepped frequency (SF) radar that utilizes period one (P1) dynamics of an optically injected semiconductor laser to generate broadband SF signals. An SF signal with a bandwidth of 4 GHz (12–16 GHz) and a frequency step of 100 MHz is generated by dynamically controlling the optical injection strength. The broadband radar echoes are subjected to stretch processing in the receiver through electrical IQ mixing. The range resolution of the established radar is tested to be 3.84 cm, and the detection of multiple targets is demonstrated through which the high range resolution detection capability of the proposed radar is verified.