Polarimetric Radar: Theory, Technology and Applications
A special issue of Remote Sensing (ISSN 2072-4292). This special issue belongs to the section "Engineering Remote Sensing".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 September 2026 | Viewed by 172
Special Issue Editors
Interests: radar polarimetry; waveform design; target detection and recognition
Interests: weather radar signal processing; radar polarimetry; active arrays; electromagnetic simulation
Interests: radar polarimetry; radar signal processing and target identification
Interests: array antenna; polarimetric phased arrays
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Polarimetric radars have established themselves as powerful and indispensable tools in remote sensing, enabling the comprehensive characterization of Earth's surface, atmospheric features, and manmade targets. At its core, the field is driven by fundamental theoretical principles governing the interaction of vector electromagnetic waves and matter. These principles underpin key capabilities such as polarimetric detection (optimizing signal reception against noise and clutter), polarimetric resolution (distinguishing scatterers based on their polarization signatures), and polarimetric recognition (classifying targets by their intrinsic scattering mechanisms). By analyzing the target polarimetric scattering characteristics—including the full scattering matrix, decomposition components, and statistical properties—we gain a unique and sensitive insight into the geometrical structure, orientation, and dielectric properties of scatterers. This theoretical and technological core distinguishes the polarimetric radar from single-polarization systems, unlocking a vast array of quantitative applications across diverse scientific and operational domains.
This Special Issue aims to present a comprehensive collection of cutting-edge research and reviews that advance the fundamental theory and enabling technologies of polarimetric radars, and demonstrate their innovative applications within the broad scope of remote sensing. We are particularly interested in works that push the boundaries of current polarimetric theory, introduce target detection, target resolution, or target identification, or demonstrate its advanced applications in terrestrial, atmospheric, oceanic, and planetary observation. Contributions that integrate polarimetric data with other remote sensing sources or address critical challenges in calibration/validation are also welcome.
The suggested themes for submissions include, but are not limited to, the following:
- The modeling and characteristic analysis of polarization scattering mechanism.
- Polarimetric detection.
- Polarimetric resolution.
- Polarimetric identification.
- Calibration and validation techniques.
- The analysis of target polarimetric scattering properties for vegetation, soil, snow/ice, water surfaces, urban areas, and planetary surfaces.
- Polarimetric SAR (PolSAR) and interferometric PolSAR (PolInSAR).
- Machine learning and deep learning for polarimetric feature extraction and recognition.
- Meteorological and atmospheric applications.
- Earth and environmental applications.
Dr. Fulai Wang
Dr. Chen Pang
Dr. Xu Cheng
Dr. Zhanling Wang
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Remote Sensing is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- radar polarimetry
- polarimetric detection
- polarimetric resolution
- polarimetric identification
- PolSAR and PolInSAR
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