Evaluations of Plasma Stealth Effectiveness Based on the Probability of Radar Detection

To overcome the limitations of radar cross section characteristic, a method using detection probability as an indicator to evaluate plasma stealth effectiveness is proposed in this paper. Based on shift operator finite-difference time-domain method, the distorted waveform of linear frequency modulation radar echo is obtained when the targets coated with plasma. Then, by making a comparison between outputs of pulse compression with and without plasma, the peak instantaneous signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) loss is calculated. According to the signal detection theory, the relationship between plasma parameters and radar detection probability is built up through the SNR loss, in which the attenuation of radar echo and the mismatch loss of pulse compression are both considered. Finally, effects of plasma parameters including electron density, collision frequency, and radar frequency on the probability of detection have been studied systematically. By adopting detection probability P d ≤0.1 as a valid criterion, the effective plasma parameters for different radar frequencies are given as a guide when using plasma for stealth application.