Antenna footprint indicates the shape and size of the area illuminated by the antenna on the ground surface or subsurface. For GPR it is important as it determines the cross-range resolution of the radar. In this paper we demonstrate that an array antenna comprising a number of rolled-dipole elements can produce a variable footprint by activating certain elements and deactivating the others. In this way the size of the array's footprint can be adjusted to remain comparable with the cross section of various targets which in turn minimizes clutter and improving the GPR performance. This paper presents FDTD simulation results and preliminary experimental result of the proposed antenna.

A concept of adaptive GPR antenna for different pulse excitations is presented. An antenna with this adaption capability has been proposed and theoretically analyzed for 2 differnt eciting oulses. The proposed antenna is able to adapt to each of those pulses to maintain its performance and give maximal radiation in the broadside direction of the antenna. The antenna can be upgraded for more pulses to enable adaption against multiple pulse exitations. It would allow GPR operations in various applications to be carried out using one antenna system.