Full-duplex operation for electronic protection by detecting communication jamming at transmitter

Abstract

Inband full-duplex (IBFD) technology enables radios to simultaneously transmit and receive (STAR) on the same frequencies with the benefit of, e.g., enhanced spectral efficiency in non-military communications. In addition, there is significant potential in the IBFD concept in military applications as currently conventional time-or frequency-division half-duplex radios are used in all military applications. A military full-duplex radio (MFDR) would be capable of simultaneous integrated tactical communication and electronic warfare operations. This paper presents an application where an MFDR enables the user to successfully detect an electronic attack, i.e., jamming from an adversary, while simultaneously transmitting tactical transmissions to an ally on the same frequency channel. Successful detection enables the MFDR to gather intelligence and take countermeasures against the jamming, e.g., switching to a different carrier frequency. The experimental results reported herein prove that the radio is able to reliably detect the presence of jamming for received jamming signal powers down to -95 dBm while simultaneously transmitting to an ally at 10-dBm power level. Therefore, the full-duplex radio can give armed forces a significant technical lead over an enemy by detecting enemy jamming even when the adversary only transmits jamming during friendly transmissions.