New algorithm for frequency estimation from short coherent pulses of a sinusoidal signal

Abstract

It is well known that the problem of estimating the frequency from a train of short coherent pulses in additive Gaussian noise calls for efficient methods to deal with the ambiguities at the multiples of the pulse repetition frequency. As a very sensitive method a χ2 test procedure has been used. By simulation it has been demonstrated that under realistic signal-to-noise and limited-bandwidth conditions only a few staggered pulses are necessary to resolve the ambiguities and to achieve a highly reliable estimate. The method is described and numerical data on the estimation accuracy are given.