Superoscillatory Radar Imaging: Improving Radar Range Resolution Beyond Fundamental Bandwidth Limitations

In this work, we propose to improve the range resolution in a conventional radar system by employing a superoscillatory pulse as the radar pulse. A superoscillatory waveform is a waveform which contains, across a finite time interval, faster variations than its highest constituent frequency component. As such, radar imaging using a superoscillatory pulse allows one to detect an object with a range resolution improved beyond a fundamental bandwidth limitation. In this work, we experimentally compare the radar resolution performance of a 500 MHz superoscillatory pulse with that of a sinc pulse of the same bandwidth, and demonstrate that the superoscillatory pulse reduces distance uncertainty by 36%. We also suggest future directions of development to our proposed radar system.