RTI Group, Russian industrial holding, announced on 9 July that it is developing new technology to create radio-photonic radar for 6th-generation fighter jets.

According to the RTI Group’s statement, the company is launching the first in Russia technological line for the production of Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser (VCSEL) to create promising radio-photonic radars that combine optical and microwave elements in the radar. In total, in the development of radio-photon technologies, the RT Group has invested about USD3 million (200 million rubles) in the last 3 years, of which USD1,6 million (100 million rubles) are in the development of the firstVCSELs in Russia.

The new radio-photonic technology promises to help radar operators cut through heavy background noise and isolate objects—including stealth aircraft, missiles, and small unmanned aerial vehicles — with unparalleled accuracy.

The new radio-photonic radars expected to be mounted on Russian next-generation fighter jets that will provide absolute air superiority and ground superiority at long range. The new radar stations based on radio-photonic technologies sees considerably further than a conventional radar and will be capable of building actually a photographic image of the target that will be identified automatically.

“The radar has passed the stage of technical design and we have results with a prototype. We are currently conducting R&D for the photonic phased array antenna to work on specifications for a series variant, to make up our mind on its physical size, supported bandwidth and power output,” said Vladimir Mikheyev, the Adviser to the First Deputy CEO of Radio-Electronic Technologies Group (KRET) speaking to Russian news agency, TASS in 2017.

In 2018 RTI Group is completing research and development work on creating a mockup of the X-band radio-photonic radar. Following its results, specialists “will determine a principal scheme of building the radio-photonic locator,” which will make it possible “in several years to build prototypes of super-light and small-size radars for unmanned aerial vehicles.”

Innovative technologies are created on the basis of the group companies: JSC OKB-Planeta, PJSC “Mikron”, LLC “Connector Optics”. The company believes that with the transition to a new technological structure, Russia has a real chance to become one of the largest players in the market of radio-photonics.

RTI Group CEO Maxim Kuzyuk was quoted by the press office as saying that “we in RTI are seeking to make the production cycle of integral radio-photonic circuits for radars fully local to participate effectively in the rapidly developing area, which can become a guarantor of the country’s security.”

RTI Group has been carrying out work on developing radio-photonic radars on its own initiative for several years now.

RTI Group is a major Russian industrial holding, which develops and manufactures high-tech products and infrastructure solutions using proprietary microelectronic technologies. RTI subsidiaries have their own R&D infrastructure and implement projects of unique complexity and scale in radio communications and space technology, security, microelectronics and system integration.