Suitability of Explosive Simulants for Millimeter-Wave Imaging Detection Systems

The test and evaluation of millimeter-wave imaging systems for explosive detection is facilitated by the substitution of explosive simulants which have an identical response to millimeter-wave illumination. The primary detection feature for millimeter-wave imaging is the dielectric constant (or electrical permittivity), so the approach to developing simulants is to match the complex dielectric constants of explosives to inert simulant materials at frequencies relevant to the imaging system. This paper describes a measurement-based methodology to assure that the simulant is a suitable substitute for the explosive. The methodology is demonstrated by dielectric measurement at 86 GHz to establish a simulant for ethylene glycol dinitrate (EGDN)