A Compact Microwave Imager Integrated With a Miniaturized Dual-Angle Anechoic Chamber

Microwave imaging based on the inverse scattering problem has attracted many interests in microwave community. To obtain a satisfactory imaging quality, in most cases, a scattering-free environment is desired. In this work, to provide such an environment, we experimentally demonstrate a compact microwave imager integrated with a board-integrated, multiport vector network analyzer and a miniaturized, cylindrical anechoic chamber dedicatedly designed for inverse scattering-based microwave imaging. Based on the principle of electrically induced transparency and the effective medium equivalence, an inhomogeneous, ultrathin, dual-angle absorbing surface was designed, simulated, and implemented, to simultaneously absorb incident and scattered fields. Experimental imaging verified its effectiveness. The proposed imager would help the promotion of practical imaging, showing the potential in on-side imaging.