ELECTRONIC SAFETY OF PORTABLE ELECTRONIC WARFARE OPERATORS: ANTENNA SUBSYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Ключові слова:
electronic warfare, unmanned aerial systems, specific absorption rate (SAR), antenna subsystem, artificial magnetic conductor (AMC), Pennes bioheat equation, IEC 62232, electromagnetic safety.Анотація
Unmanned aerial systems (UASs) have become one of the key factors in modern warfare. The widespread use of commercial and specialized drones for reconnaissance, fire control, and direct target engagement has created a critical need for effective countermeasures – electronic warfare (EW) systems. The fundamental design feature of portable “trench EW” systems is that the antenna subsystem is placed directly on the soldier’s body or in close proximity to it. The distance from the radiating aperture to the operator’s head or torso is small (0.05–0.3 m) and lies in the reactive near-field zone where the electromagnetic field levels significantly exceed the values predicted by calculations in the far-field zone. Issues of personnel electromagnetic safety are regulated by the international standards ICNIRP and IEEE C95.1 together with the domestic standard DSN 3.3.6.096–2002. None of the above documents establishes any specific requirements for the design of portable electronic warfare equipment antennas from the standpoint of minimizing the specific absorption rate (SAR) in near-field conditions, which determines the relevance of this work.
Based on an analysis of microwave radiation – biological tissues interaction mechanisms and analytical SAR estimates, this work formulates requirements for anti-UAS EW antenna subsystems such that effective target jamming is ensured while complying with the electromagnetic safety standards.
The paper classifies portable UAS-jamming devices, presents the dielectric properties of human tissues at frequencies of 0.43–5.8 GHz, and describes a SAR model based on the Pennes equation. A parametric SAR analysis was performed for four scenarios of manpack systems at a power of 1–30 W, and minimum safe distances were mapped. The obtained estimates were verified by comparison with published FDTD results for similar configurations. Radiation pattern, SAR level, and measurement verification requirements were formulated together with design and operating requirements.
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