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Q.Microwaves are used in Radars, why?
Telangana TsbieTelangana Board of Intermediate Education 2025Subjective· 2mImportance★★★★★
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Start your 14-day free trial to unlock the full solution →Microwaves have a very short wavelength, so they can be focused into a narrow beam with minimal spreading (diffraction), letting radar pinpoint an object's direction and range accurately.
Why microwaves suit radar
Radar (RAdio Detection And Ranging) works by transmitting a short burst of electromagnetic waves toward a target, and detecting the wave reflected back from the target. From the direction of the transmitted/received beam and the time taken for the pulse to return, the position (direction) and distance (range) of the object (e.g., an aircraft or ship) can be calculated.
- Short wavelength -> narrow beam: Microwaves have wavelengths in the range of centimetres to a few metres (frequencies from about 1 GHz to 300 GHz). Because diffraction spreading is significant only when the wavelength is comparable to the size of the aperture/obstacle, such a short wavelength can be transmitted using a moderately sized antenna/reflector (a parabolic dish) as a highly directional, narrow beam, much like a searchlight - this pinpoints direction precisely, unlike longer radio waves which spread out in all directions.
- Straight-line (line-of-sight) travel: Being of high frequency, microwaves travel essentially in straight lines, so the direction of the reflected signal reliably indicates the direction of the target. …
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