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RIS-aided Radar Detection Architectures with Application to Low-RCS Targets

Fabiola Colone, Filippo Costa, Yiding Gao, Chengpeng Hao, Linjie Yan, Giuliano Manara, Danilo Orlando

TL;DR

The paper addresses detecting low-RCS targets by leveraging a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) to create a joint monostatic-bistatic sensing setup that captures energy redirected from non-LOS directions. It develops five GLRT-based architectures—three EP-GLRT variants, a cyclic-optimization approach, and an approximate GLRT—proving CFAR properties and offering RIS design guidelines to ensure sufficient backscattered energy is available for detection. Through extensive Monte Carlo simulations, the study shows substantial performance gains over conventional detectors and identifies A-GLRT, C-GLRT, and EP-GLRT-KA as the most promising methods. The work demonstrates a practical RIS design pathway to enable effective sensing of low-RCS targets while reducing network complexity and energy consumption, with future directions including multi-RIS configurations and symmetry-based reductions.

Abstract

In this paper, we address the radar detection of low observable targets with the assistance of a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). Instead of using a multistatic radar network as counter-stealth strategy with its synchronization, costs, phase coherence, and energy consumption issues, we exploit a RIS to form a joint monostatic and bistatic configuration that can intercept the energy backscattered by the target along irrelevant directions different from the line-of-sight of the radar. Then, this energy is redirected towards the radar that capitalizes all the backscattered energy to detect the low observable target. To this end, five different detection architectures are devised that jointly process monostatic and bistatic echoes and exhibit the constant false alarm rate property at least with respect to the clutter power. To support the practical implementation, we also provide a guideline for the design of a RIS that satisfies the operating requirements of the considered application. The performance analysis is carried out in comparison with conventional detectors and shows that the proposed strategy leads to effective solutions to the detection of low observable targets.

RIS-aided Radar Detection Architectures with Application to Low-RCS Targets

TL;DR

The paper addresses detecting low-RCS targets by leveraging a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) to create a joint monostatic-bistatic sensing setup that captures energy redirected from non-LOS directions. It develops five GLRT-based architectures—three EP-GLRT variants, a cyclic-optimization approach, and an approximate GLRT—proving CFAR properties and offering RIS design guidelines to ensure sufficient backscattered energy is available for detection. Through extensive Monte Carlo simulations, the study shows substantial performance gains over conventional detectors and identifies A-GLRT, C-GLRT, and EP-GLRT-KA as the most promising methods. The work demonstrates a practical RIS design pathway to enable effective sensing of low-RCS targets while reducing network complexity and energy consumption, with future directions including multi-RIS configurations and symmetry-based reductions.

Abstract

In this paper, we address the radar detection of low observable targets with the assistance of a reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS). Instead of using a multistatic radar network as counter-stealth strategy with its synchronization, costs, phase coherence, and energy consumption issues, we exploit a RIS to form a joint monostatic and bistatic configuration that can intercept the energy backscattered by the target along irrelevant directions different from the line-of-sight of the radar. Then, this energy is redirected towards the radar that capitalizes all the backscattered energy to detect the low observable target. To this end, five different detection architectures are devised that jointly process monostatic and bistatic echoes and exhibit the constant false alarm rate property at least with respect to the clutter power. To support the practical implementation, we also provide a guideline for the design of a RIS that satisfies the operating requirements of the considered application. The performance analysis is carried out in comparison with conventional detectors and shows that the proposed strategy leads to effective solutions to the detection of low observable targets.
Paper Structure (19 sections, 73 equations, 13 figures, 1 table)

This paper contains 19 sections, 73 equations, 13 figures, 1 table.

Table of Contents

  1. Introduction
  2. Notation
  3. Problem Formulation
  4. Architecture Designs
  5. Estimate-and-Plug Solutions
  6. GLRT based on Cyclic Optimization
  7. Approximate GLRT
  8. On the CFAR Property
  9. RCS of Low-RCS Aircrafts and RIS Design Issues
  10. Low-RCS Aircrafts: Examples
  11. Case Study, Energy Considerations, and RIS Design
  12. $2$-dimensional Uniform Illumination
  13. Sinc Tapering along the x-axis and Uniform Illumination along y-axis
  14. LFM Phase-only Tapering along the x-axis and Uniform Illumination along y-axis
  15. Performance Assessment
  16. ...and 4 more sections

Figures (13)

  • Figure 1: Geometry of the operating scenario.
  • Figure 2: Considered paths.
  • Figure 3: Geometry of the investigated operating scenario.
  • Figure 4: Received power as a function of the RIS RCS for the three analyzed contributions.
  • Figure 5: Sinc tapering of the aperture and RCS pattern obtained for an aperture of $50\lambda$.
  • ...and 8 more figures