Research on conformal reflectarray for RCS enhancement in specific angular domain

Abstract

In this paper, a new application scenario for the conformal reflectarray is proposed. A conformal reflectarray element composed of a split ring and two arcs acting as phase shift lines is adopted. The phase shift between 0° and 360° is achieved by adjusting the length of the two arc lines. A new phase distribution calculation method is proposed to achieve a 10-dB enhancement of monostatic radar cross section (RCS) at 15° to 30° of the tail of the missile. Projectiles (missile body) with and without the conformal reflectarray are fabricated and measured. Measurement results showed that the projectile with the proposed conformal reflectarray achieves RCS enhancement in the angular range of 15° to 30°. Specifically, RCS enhancements of 17.6, 10.43, and 29.02 dB are achieved at 15°, 30°, and the design angle of 22.5°, respectively. This work is the first to apply a conformal reflectarray to RCS enhancement in a specific angular domain.