MIMO Radar with Widely Separated Antennas

MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) radar refers to an architecture that employs multiple, spatially distributed transmitters and receivers. While, in a general sense, MIMO radar can be viewed as a type of multistatic radar, the separate nomenclature suggests unique features that set MIMO radar apart from the multistatic radar literature and that have a close relation to MIMO communications. This article reviews some recent work on MIMO radar with widely separated antennas. Widely separated transmit/receive antennas capture the spatial diversity of the target's radar cross section (RCS). Unique features of MIMO radar are explained and illustrated by examples. It is shown that with noncoherent processing, a…