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Type of Document	Dissertation
Author	van Zyl, Jakob Johannes
URN	etd-06262006-133025
Persistent URL	http://resolver.caltech.edu/CaltechETD:etd-06262006-133025
Title	On the importance of polarization in radar scattering problems
Degree	PhD
Option	Electrical Engineering
Advisory Committee	Advisor Name Title Charles Herach Papas Committee Chair Charles Elachi Committee Member
Keywords	none
Date of Defense	1985-12-10
Availability	restricted
Abstract In this thesis, the importance of polarization in radar scattering problems is investigated. The different matrix characterizations of scatterers are discussed in detail. The problem of finding the polarizations which would yield an optimum amount of power received from the scatterer is solved for the most general case. This shows that for certain classes of scatterers six optimum polarizations exist. The concept of a polarization spectrum to characterize a scatterer is introduced. The usefulness of these spectrums is illustrated when results, using measured multipolarization synthetic aperture radar data, are discussed. Another useful parameter, the coefficient of variation, is introduced. Measured results show that this parameter may be used to form an idea of the scale over which the scattering properties of the scene being imaged vary. The problem of finding the effective scattering operator of a slab filled with different scatterers is formulated. Detailed expressions are given for the effective single scattering operators. This formulation is illustrated by calculating the effective single scattering operators for models of different types of vegetation.
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