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Fig. 1: Contributions to the observable antenna temperature in radiometric measurements for mine detection. whereby i denotes the contribution of the ith radiation source within the antenna beam, and ei, ri, and ti are the emissivity, reflectivity and transmittivity of the matter along the path in direction i, with ei+ri+ti = 1 because of energy conservation. T0i is the physical temperature, TSi is an apparent temperature of the surroundings reflected toward the radiometer antenna, e.g. the sky brightness temperature, and TBi is the apparent temperature
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from the background behind the object in the case of a partly microwave-transparent object and object layer. Ti is the apparent brightness temperature which could be observed by the radiometer in the case of a Dirac-function-like antenna pattern. Note that each quantity usually is dependent on the observation direction i, the frequency, and the polarization. The range of Ti varies typically between about 3K to 300K for completely reflective or absorptive matter as in the case of an extended flat metal plate, behaving as a mirror and reflecting perfectly the cosmic background radiation, or as a microwave absorber, behaving as a blackbody and emmitting purely the physical temperature radiation. The lateral ground resolution in x, y for radiometer systems is usually dependent on the size of the antenna collecting all by Pi weighted contributions within its field of view (FOV). Consequently high resolution radiometer systems for longer distances are mainly restricted to millimeter waves (MMW) due to a moderate antenna size requirement. Due to the insufficient penetration depth of MMWs for typical mine detection scenarios we have to use frequencies in the lower microwave (MW) region. Here we apply the microwave sensors in a downright near-field application because of the lower spatial resolution at these wavelengths for a given antenna size. The temperature resolution or sensitivity of a simple radiometer system for mine detection can be made to about 1K or less which altogether is adequate for practical situations. Hence the brightness temperature contrast of an object against its surrounding background has to be slightly higher in the order of several Kelvin for a reliable discrimination. Consequently an isolated object can be detected, even if its size is smaller than the FOV of the antenna beam, provided its original contrast against the surrounding background is high enough. Following these predications made before we consider for the mine detection a near-field operation and the use of multiple center frequencies of lower bandwidth spreaded within a broadband reception area. The idea behind that is a considerable enhancement of the information content comprehended in the different interaction of electromagnetic waves with layered media over several octaves of wavelengths. Experiments have shown an additional advantage of narrow-band spectral measurements within a broadband range by the capability of freely selecting those frequencies which are not disturbed by electronical smog like television, broadcasting, telecommunications, radars, or aggregates. Further general readings on microwave radiometry can be found in references [1], [2], and [3].
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Fig. 2: Block diagram of the radiometer receiver and the supporting control and data acquisition equipment. The incoming thermal radiation is collected by a broadband antenna of Vivaldi type. The antenna is connected via an electronic calibration switch to a first low-noise and broadband amplifier stage. The switch allows to toggle between several radiation sources like another Vivaldi antenna pointed to the sky during the measurements and a 50 load as two reference sources of known brightness temperatures. The sky antenna is connecetd via a low-attenuation cable to the switch and acts as a cold source measuring the cosmic background radiation close to 3K. The 50 load is connecetd directly to the switch and acts a blackbody radiating thermal power according to his physical temperature of around 300K. The broadband and low-noise amplifier stage is followed by a filterbank which allows electronically the selection between four different narrowband frequency channels. After a second amplification the high frequency noise signal is rectified by a detector diode. The main output of the detector is a DC voltage proportional to the high frequency power at the calibration switch inputs. A residual inherent baseband noise around the further amplified DC signal is finally low-pass filtered, i.e. temporary integrated, to increase the receiver sensitivity. The technical data of the radiometer receiver are summarized in table 1.
Center frequency [GHz] System bandwidth (3dB) [MHz] Receiver noise temperature [K] Theoretical sensitivity (RMS) [K] Calibration accuracy (without antenna effects) [K]
Table 1: Technical data of the radiometer receiver The final analog receiver output is connected to a data acquisiton board integrated in a personal computer (PC). The board performs controlled analog to digital (A/D) conversion of the analog signal and provides digital control signals for the calibration switch and the filter bank. Furthermore the board allows the evaluation of digital input signals for triggering on the start and stop events for the data acquisition. The PC runs the main software for the overall measurement procedure and stores the data on the hard disc.
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5. References
[1] Ulaby F.T., Moore R.K., Fung A.K., Microwave Remote Sensing - Active and Passive - Microwave Remote Sensing Fundamentals and Radiometry, Vol. I, Addison-Wesley, Reading, 1981. [2] Skou N.: Microwave Radiometer Systems: Design and Analysis, Artech House, 1989. [3] Peichl M., S H., Dill S., Greiner M., Zeiler M., Todays imaging technologies and applications of microwave radiometry, German Radar Symposium GRS 2000, Berlin, Germany, 11-12 October 2000.
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