Is the Stealth Technology, Game Over?
I have always suggested, that Stealth Technology, is not a safe place, to bet your
Empire in. There are already several technologies, arrayed against it. And China is actively researching all of them, and has made important progress.
1.) "
Passive Radar, which is a receive-only system that uses transmitters of opportunity. Integrating a system of netted receivers, passive radar can detect, track, and target piloted and unpiloted stealth systems and provide cuing for antiair weapons systems."
2.) "
Quantum Radar, which is a remote-sensing method based on
quantum entanglement. The most convincing model has been proposed by an international team of researchers.
[1][2] This team designed a model of quantum radar for remote sensing of a low-reflectivity target that is embedded within a bright microwave background, with detection performance well beyond the capability of a classical microwave radar."
3.)
Distributed and Networked AESAs, where there is one or more active transmitters, working together, with one or more passive receivers, deployed in a wide area, forming a network, thus, exponentially increase the detection power of the individual AESA elements.
Encrypted radar signals with transmitter's ID, time, and location, are bounced off the target and then picked by the passive receivers, and integrated into a whole aerial picture, by fast supercomputers.
Since the shape of the stealth plane, do not absorb all the radar signals, but merely deflected them away, from the transmitters, and
concentrated in several directions, it is inherently powerless, to countered this type of
distributed and networked AESAs.,
4.) "
IRST, Infrared Search and Track System is a method for detecting and tracking objects which give off infrared radiation (see Infrared signature) such as jet aircraft and helicopters. It has forward-looking to all-round situation awareness. Such systems are passive (thermographic camera), meaning they do not give out any radiation of their own, unlike radar. This gives them the advantage that they are difficult to detect."
The Pilots of Euro Typhoons, equipped with IRST, claimed they could detect the F-22 from 90km away. Of course, the detection range of the IRST, depends on the target's speed, altitude, and the state of its engine's Afterburner. (ie. is it on, and in full blast mode?)
5.) And now, Chinese scientists have made major breakthrough in a 2-D semiconductor material for AESA radars that will increase the effective power output by whooping
1000 times, and sensitivity by
6000 times.
This material could increase the effective detection range of current AESA by
50 times, with the same size and same number of T/R elements.
This means if F-22's Frontal RCS is 0.0001m2 (more likely between 0.1m2 and 0.5m2, IMO), it could be detected
576km away. This may be the end of the Stealth Technology as we know it. Note, you can not decrease the RCS, indefinitely, because it gets harder and harder, after a while.
@Figaro, you can read the original paper, in English, here. It contains a great deal of Chemical terms.
@Deino might be, in a better position, to understand it.
“Solution Synthesis of Semiconducting Two-Dimensional Polymer via Trimerization of Carbonitrile ”
Journal of the American Chemical Society, 2017.
or read the Chinese explanations of the significance of this new materials, here.
http://www.cailiaoniu.com/93971.html
http://mil.news.sina.com.cn/jssd/2017-09-02/doc-ifykpysa2733961.shtml
