Probe configuration study for the metamaterial aperture imager

We investigate a metamaterial imager (metaimager) consisting of one transmitting metamaterial panel and a collection of broadband receiving probes. Image reconstruction is performed by interrogating a scene with a set of radiative measurement modes encoded in the frequency response of the metamaterial panel. The image quality is a function of the ability of the receiving probes to capture the reflected energy. Here, the number and configuration of the receiving probe antennas is investigated. It is demonstrated that increasing the number of probe antennas and distributing their placement in space increases the effective receiver aperture size and the number of measurement modes, enhancing the image reconstruction for the metamaterial imager. The imaging of a smiley face target is performed using one-probe and five-probe metaimager configurations and successfully reconstructed images are demonstrated.