Radar Principles for the Non-Specialist
Radar Principles for the Non-specialist, Third Edition continues its popular tradition: to distill the very complex technology of radar into its fundamentals, tying them to the laws of nature on one end and to the most modern and complex systems on the other.
It starts with electromagnetic propagation, describes a radar of the utmost simplicity, and derives the radar range equation from that simple radar. Once the range equation is available, the book attacks the meaning of each term in it, moving through antennas, detection and tracking, radar cross-section, waveforms and signal processing, and systems applications. At the finish, the reader should be able to do an acceptable, first-order radar design, and to critique the designs of others. Students, engineers, scientists, and managers will benefit from this book.
New to this edition: Every section of each chapter was revised in some way. The more noticeable enhancements are the additions of equation numbers, more numerical examples, table and figures showing many of the concepts numerically, and exercises for almost all the concepts. These enhancements make the book easier to learn from (and teach out of).
Key Features
Concise, self-contained chapters for quick and easy comprehension of concepts
A practical glossary to help readers look up and apply key radar terms
The 294 pages include 97 figures, 6 tables, 253 equations, and 61 exercises
Numerous exercises that reinforce the concepts and their real-life application
A comprehensive solution set (Mathcad and RTF files) for the vast majority of the exercises is available from the publisher upon request.
Why Read This Book
You will get a clear, engineering-focused distillation of radar from basic physics to system-level design so you can understand how radar performance follows from the laws of nature and practical trade-offs. The book ties antennas, waveforms, detection, and signal processing together so you can do credible first-order designs and critically evaluate others' systems.
Who Will Benefit
Graduate students, practicing radar and signal-processing engineers, and systems designers who need a practical, non-specialist introduction to radar fundamentals and signal processing used in radar systems.
Level: Intermediate — Prerequisites: College-level calculus and linear systems, basic electromagnetics (introductory level), and introductory probability and signals knowledge (Fourier transforms and basic DSP concepts).
Key Takeaways
- Derive and apply the radar range equation to estimate detection ranges and perform budget-style link analyses
- Analyze antenna performance and radar cross section (RCS) effects to predict system sensitivity and target signatures
- Design and evaluate basic radar waveforms, including pulse compression and matched filtering, to trade range resolution versus ambiguity
- Apply FFT-based spectral analysis and Doppler/MTI concepts to detect and separate moving targets from clutter
- Implement and reason about detection and estimation fundamentals (SNR, CFAR, probability of detection/false alarm) for practical systems
- Perform first-order, system-level radar design and critique system trade-offs across propagation, hardware, and signal-processing domains
Topics Covered
- Introduction and historical perspective
- Electromagnetic propagation and basic radar geometry
- A simple radar and derivation of the radar range equation
- Antennas and beamforming fundamentals
- Radar cross section (RCS) and target phenomenology
- Receivers, noise, and basic SNR considerations
- Detection theory: SNR, probability of detection and false alarm (PD/PFA), CFAR
- Waveforms, modulation, pulse compression, and matched filtering
- Doppler processing, MTI, and velocity measurement
- Spectral analysis, FFT methods, and practical signal-processing considerations
- Clutter, interference, and countermeasures
- Tracking basics and systems-level considerations
- Radar systems applications and trade-offs
- Appendices: reference formulas and practical calculation methods
Languages, Platforms & Tools
How It Compares
More approachable and systems-oriented than Skolnik's Introduction to Radar Systems and less DSP-mathematics-heavy than Richards' Fundamentals of Radar Signal Processing, making Toomay a practical bridge between high-level system texts and DSP-focused treatments.
