Backscattering of ground terrain and building materials at submillimeter-wave and terahertz frequencies

As terrestrial remote sensing and communication systems continue to evolve in the 0.1 – 0.3 THz band, the need to understand the scattering behavior of common materials and ground terrain at these frequencies becomes important. Terrain features and surface roughness that would otherwise appear smooth at longer wavelengths begin to significantly impact the radar cross section of the surfaces at these higher frequencies. The HH and VV polarized backscattering coefficient of several types of ground terrain and building materials were measured in indoor compact radar ranges operating at 100 GHz and 240 GHz. Measurements of the various materials were collected at elevation angles ranging from 5 to 35 degrees. The goal of the effort was to develop a better understanding of the polarimetric scattering behavior of materials in the 0.1–0.3 THz region.