The use of polarimetry in subsurface radar

Extraction of target information from the measurement of the state of polarization of the scattered wave has been a promising area of research for a number of years. This paper discusses the theory and implementation of a stepped frequency CW polarimetric subsurface radar. The extended Prony method is used to obtain high resolution range profiles from which the scattering matrices are extracted. The results of laboratory trials are presented. These include measurements of the scattering matrix for a pipe and plate conducting targets, buried in a large sand box. Polarization responses for these targets are plotted to emphasize the use of the scattering matrix for target discrimination