The Effect of Antenna Mutual Coupling on MIMO Radar System Performance

Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radar systems use orthogonal signaling to enable combined transmit and receive beamforming through signal processing on the received signals. Because of the combined role of transmit and receive arrays in this processing for monostatic MIMO radar, mutual coupling present in these arrays impacts the beamforming in a unique way. This paper presents a mathematical model of a MIMO radar with coupled antennas and appropriate radio frequency circuitry. Application of the model to evaluate radar detection of a single target demonstrates that coupling can result in target detection angles that are in error by as much as 12° and increase beamformer response sidelobe levels by as much as 8 dB. The results also show that a simple matching network can improve detection performance, particularly when array mutual coupling is high.

[1]  Zhang Jianyun,et al.  Angle estimation of bistatic MIMO radar in the presence of unknown mutual coupling , 2011, Proceedings of 2011 IEEE CIE International Conference on Radar.

[2]  Buon Kiong Lau,et al.  Impact of Matching Network on Bandwidth of Compact Antenna Arrays , 2006, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[3]  Shannon D. Blunt,et al.  The impact of mutual coupling on MIMO radar emissions , 2011, 2011 International Conference on Electromagnetics in Advanced Applications.

[4]  M. Lesturgie,et al.  Coupling effects in MIMO phased array , 2016, 2016 IEEE Radar Conference (RadarConf).

[5]  Reinhard Feger,et al.  An FMCW MIMO radar calibration and mutual coupling compensation approach , 2013, 2013 European Radar Conference.

[6]  Jun Jiang,et al.  Angle estimation and self-calibration for bistatic MIMO radar with mutual coupling of transmitting and receiving arrays , 2014, 2014 IEEE Workshop on Electronics, Computer and Applications.

[7]  F.C. Robey,et al.  MIMO radar theory and experimental results , 2004, Conference Record of the Thirty-Eighth Asilomar Conference on Signals, Systems and Computers, 2004..

[8]  M. Jensen,et al.  Effects of mutual coupling on interference mitigation with a focal plane array , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[9]  Galina Babur,et al.  Antenna Coupling Effects for Space-Time Radar Waveforms: Analysis and Calibration , 2014, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[10]  M.A. Jensen,et al.  Network model for MIMO systems with coupled antennas and noisy amplifiers , 2005, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[11]  B. Himed,et al.  Mutual coupling analysis for colocated MIMO radar applications using CEM modeling , 2017, 2017 IEEE Radar Conference (RadarConf).

[12]  Buon Kiong Lau,et al.  Antenna Matching for Capacity Maximization in Compact MIMO Systems , 2006, 2006 3rd International Symposium on Wireless Communication Systems.

[13]  Buon Kiong Lau,et al.  Uncoupled Matching for Active and Passive Impedances of Coupled Arrays in MIMO Systems , 2010, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[14]  Benjamin Friedlander,et al.  On the Relationship Between MIMO and SIMO Radars , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing.

[15]  Bin Liao,et al.  Direction Finding in MIMO Radar With Unknown Mutual Coupling , 2017, IEEE Access.

[16]  F. Le Chevalier,et al.  Improved calibration technique for the transmit beamforming by a coherent MIMO radar with collocated antennas , 2014, 2014 XXXIth URSI General Assembly and Scientific Symposium (URSI GASS).

[17]  Michael A. Jensen,et al.  Mutual coupling in MIMO wireless systems: a rigorous network theory analysis , 2004, IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications.

[18]  Paul V. Brennan,et al.  FMCW Based MIMO Imaging Radar for Maritime Navigation , 2011 .

[19]  P. Russer,et al.  Minimizing the Noise Penalty Due to Mutual Coupling for a Receiving Array , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[20]  K.F. Warnick,et al.  Optimal Noise Matching for Mutually Coupled Arrays , 2007, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.

[21]  Michael A. Jensen,et al.  The effect of antenna mutual coupling in a mimo radar system , 2017, 2017 IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation & USNC/URSI National Radio Science Meeting.

[22]  Jian Li,et al.  On Parameter Identifiability of MIMO Radar , 2007, IEEE Signal Processing Letters.

[23]  A. Stelzer,et al.  An IQ-modulator based heterodyne 77-GHz FMCW colocated MIMO radar system , 2012, 2012 IEEE/MTT-S International Microwave Symposium Digest.

[24]  A. Stelzer,et al.  A 77-GHz FMCW MIMO Radar Based on an SiGe Single-Chip Transceiver , 2009, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques.

[25]  Buon Kiong Lau,et al.  Optimal Single-Port Matching Impedance for Capacity Maximization in Compact MIMO Arrays , 2008, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.