Scattering Mechanism Analysis of Man-Made Targets via Polarimetric SAR Observation Simulation

Scattering mechanism analysis of a man-made target is critical for polarimetric synthetic aperture radar (PolSAR) image feature extraction and image interpretation. The most straightforward method for scattering mechanism investigation of man-made target is to analyze a huge amount of measured data under various conditions. However, the acquirement of measured data is extremely expensive and time consuming, coupled with its poor reusability, which makes the investigation inefficient and costly. The electromagnetic (EM) simulation is an effective and convenient way to obtain PolSAR data by solving equations describing the EM scattering from target of interest. It is adaptable to any observation condition, targets or environments, which have become a powerful tool commonly used for the study of EM scattering mechanism of target. In this article, an efficient simulation framework for the emulation of PolSAR operation and imaging is proposed. This framework is based on ray tracing integrated with geometrical optics, physical optics, and Kirchhoff approximation. The simulated image of a family car is in good agreement with the measured data of MiniSAR platform. Besides, images of T-72 tank under various observation conditions, radar parameters and terrains are simulated. Freeman decomposition is employed and scattering component percentages of target under different conditions are presented to analyze the scattering mechanism in detail.