Advanced Direct Wideband Analog to Digital Conversion for Radar

Helios Remote Sensing Systems proposes to develop and demonstrate a direct wideband (WB) analog-to-digital conversion (ADC) capability for all types of radar systems to improve performance capability and reduce costs.Helios will define and develop a concept for a Direct Wideband ADC Digital Down converter that meets the requirements of advanced radar systems.We will demonstrate the feasibility of the concept in meeting Army needs and will establish that concepts can be developed into a useful product.Material testing and analytical modeling will be used to establish feasibility. This concept development effort will assess the importance of several factors, such as instantaneous bandwidth, dynamic range, and sampling rates.Evidence of design optimization of these parameters will be established and a comparison between model predictions and measured performance will be completed.Plans for implementing the Direct WB ADC will be included as an output of Phase I, along with estimated performance.The Direct WB ADC will initially be designed to operate at L band frequencies, but demonstration at higher bands will be established.Bandwidths on the order of 500 MHz or greater will also be demonstrated.Dynamic Range of the ADC greater than 16 bit is a goal of this effort.