Frequency Bands

The microwave part of the electromagnetic spectrum (1-30cm) is used by radar. It was broken up into bands, which were given arbitrary labels during World War II. These names have entered radar jargon and are commonly used. They are listed in the table in Figure 2.1. For wavelengths in the region 30-75cm, the term P-band is often used. Because of atmospheric absorption effects, only certain sharply defined windows in the spectrum can be used for imaging purposes.

Figure 2.1: The IEE names for radar frequency bands.