W-Band Photonic Receiver for Compact Cloud Radars.

Area of Science:

• RF photonics
• Millimeter wave radar technology
• Remote sensing instrumentation

Background:

• Traditional electronic receivers for millimeter wave radars face limitations in size, weight, power, and noise.
• There is a need for more compact and sensitive radar systems for space-borne applications.

Purpose of the Study:

• To introduce and analyze a novel RF-photonics receiver concept for next-generation ultra-compact millimeter wave radars.
• To assess the feasibility of photonic gain and reduced noise temperature for space-borne radar applications.

Main Methods:

• Analytical and numerical studies of the photonic receiver front-end.
• Optimization of the receiver design for W-band (94 GHz) operation.

Main Results:

• The RF-photonics receiver architecture offers reduced component count and interfaces, leading to lower size, weight, and power (SWaP).
• Predicted greater than unity photonic gain and lower than ambient effective noise temperature.
• The design is optimized for W-band radars crucial for atmospheric observations.

Conclusions:

• The proposed RF-photonics receiver concept is feasible and offers significant advantages for compact space-borne radars.
• This technology enables improved sensitivity and reduced SWaP, making it attractive for cloud profiling and atmospheric measurements from space.