RF over Fibre based Built in Test Set up for Active Phased Array Radars

Target simulators are crucial in modern day radars to achieve desired radar performance. Target simulation aids in checking the operation of various subsystems of the radar system in the absence of real targets and for testing/evaluation of various radar parameters such as resolution, accuracy and minimum detectable signal. The work presents a Built In Test Equipment (BITE) design using RF over Fibre technology resulting in an efficient system with respect to RF losses & weight constraints due to advantages of fibre optic technology. The work presents the design scheme in detail with results obtained at each stage of implementation. The design consists of target simulation capabilities with multiple bandwidth, pulse width, slope parameters etc. Further the design can be configured for different waveform parameters such as modulation, pulsewidth and target characteristics as per the need of the radar system testing environment.