Concept of Iterative Time-Reversal Radar (ITRR)

The authors propose a nascent concept for an iterative time-reversal radar (ITRR) that shows promise for detecting and tracking (localizing) a target of interest by using multiple transmit-receive pairs (distributed radars) and iteratively applying time reversal (TR). Existing research suggests that the ITRR methodology rapidly converges to a waveform that is better suited (matched) to a target, because the waveform’s frequency profile is better aligned with a target’s resonances. Hence an ITRR may provide a more effective way of generating waveforms that respond more dynamically to targets. The fundamental premise is to replace the matched filter of standard radar methodology, which assumes that the received and transmitted signals are the same, with an iterative TR (ITR) process that allows the environment to do the matched filtering, thereby achieving better cross-correlation between the transmitted and received signals. Important issues and open problems are noted.