A regularization approach to microwave imaging under the second-order Born approximation with real data

A simple and efficient method for data inversion in microwave imaging is proposed. The approach is based on the inverse scattering theory. The measured data are related to the dielectric properties of the object under test by the well-known Lippmann-Schwinger integral equation. The second-order Born approximation is applied in order to eliminate the internal electric field from the set of unknowns. In order to retrieve the distributions of the dielectric parameters of the object under test, an Inexact-Newton method is applied. The excellent regularization properties of the method are assessed by means of a number of simulations, in which multilayer cylinders are reconstructed. Real input data are also used to validate the approach under real measurement conditions.