Dual band radome wall design

Radomes for currently-deployed air launched tactical missiles are typically designed to operate at a single frequency or narrow range of frequencies, and occasionally over a wider band of contiguous frequencies spanning an octave or slightly more. Requirements to operate against an extended threat suite, and/or to negate probable countermeasures tactics, indicate a need for future systems to encompass a multi-mode capability. Such systems will combine operations in two or more discrete segments of the electromagnetic spectrum in an integrated seeker unit. Possible mechanizations include combinations of RF/IR, IR/UV, passive RF/active RF, and microwave/millimeter wave bands. Multimode systems such as these will naturally require a matching capability from the radome. Computer analysis can permit the identification of promising wall configurations, exhibiting desirable electrical properties in physically realizable thickness combinations. This paper describes two dual-band walls designed in this manner.