Analysis and Correction of Time Delay Active Radar Calibrator Imaging for High-resolution SAR

Time delay Active Radar Calibrator (ARC) is the crucial equipment for image quality evaluation and radiation calibration of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR). The technique of time delay in ARC will reduce the influence of local noise and improve the measure precision. However, the image quality of time delay ARC will be influenced inevitably, especially for high-resolution SAR. In this paper, the analysis model for image quality influence of ARC induced by time delay for high-resolution SAR is established. The effects induced by different time delay, including peak power, 3 dB width of main lobe, Peak Side Lobe Ratio (PSLR) and Integrated Side Lobe Ratio (ISLR) are analyzed quantificationally. A correction method of time delay is proposed, and the validity of the method is proved through simulation.