Optimization algorithms for transmit waveform design in radar-centric dual-function radar-communication systems

Abstract

We study the transmit waveform optimization problem in multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) dual-function radar-communication (DFRC) systems. A penalty-based formulation is adopted where engineering concerns on radar and communication are integrated in a weighted manner. We transform the original problem into an unconstrained formulation and propose a novel waveform synthesis algorithm via combination of multiple algorithm updates. The combination operation experimentally reaches a better objective value than without. We develop two combination strategies and invent a shrinkage-expansion line search method for monotonicity maintenance. Numerical experiments show that the proposed algorithm suffices to generate constant modulus waveforms which achieve radar and communication purposes.