Radar Cross Section Pattern Measurements in a Mode-Stirred Reverberation Chamber: Theory and Experiments

This article deals with the ability to perform radar cross section (RCS) pattern measurements within reverberation chambers (RCs). The characterization principle is based on the estimation of the backscattered field from the target at a far-field distance and takes advantage of the diffuse field within the RC. A frequency sweep of scattering parameters is achieved in the presence and absence of the target installed on a rotating mast, and the pattern is retrieved from these measurements. This article explains the underlying theory and discusses the impact of several parameters on the performances. This includes the effect of the stirrer rotation, which enables to enhance the dynamic range of the measurements. Experiments in two different RCs show the relevance of the proposed approach for RCS extraction and confirm the theoretical analysis.