Michael Brandfass

Dr. Michael Brandfass works as a Senior Radar Systems Expert at HENSOLDT Sensors with more than 25 years of experience in the field of Radar and RF system design and algorithm development and is involved in cross-functional Research & Technology support and consultancy for all future Radar & RF research programs at HENSOLDT related to Airborne, Spaceborne, and Naval & Ground Radars.

He has been acting in the field of Multifunctional RF Systems research for more than 10 years, developing Multifunctional RF System demonstrators and concepts, and leading the system designs and algorithm developments in this area.
Furthermore, he is the CapTech Industry Rapporteur for Radar and RF-Systems of the European Defence Agency and acts as a NATO Member at Large for the Radio-Frequency Technology Focus Group within the NATO Sensors and Electronics Technology Panel.

Dr. Brandfass published more than 50 scientific journal and conference publications on Radar and Multifunctional RF Systems and signal processing, fast algorithms for electromagnetic field computations as well as electromagnetic inverse scattering.

Title of the presentation:
Redefining Electronic Warfare via Multifunctional RF-Systems

Abstract:
The rapid advances in ultrabroadband digital and RF technologies are driving novel capabilities by integrating Radar, Electronic Support Measures (ESM), Electronic Countermeasures (ECM), and COMMs functions across an ultrawide frequency spectrum, all through a common Active Electronically Scanned Array (AESA). Such systems known as Multifunctional RF Systems (MFRFS) are not in operation today, however, they offer unprecedented operational versatility for airborne, shipborne, and ground‐based assets in the future.

Ultrabroadband AESA architectures, which dedicate independent sub‑apertures for reception, can pick up short radar emissions, making low-probability‑of‑intercept (LPI) signals far more detectable. Combined with the arrays’ rapid beam steering and high directivity, plus independent transmit and receive sub‑apertures, MFRFS deliver extended-range, multi‑signal, multi‑target jamming as well as better burn‑through protection at closer range.

Deploying such systems in multisite, multistatic configurations—both on the ground and in the air—unlocks new ECM and ESM tactics essential for tomorrow’s demanding scenarios: wider target coverage, instantaneous geolocation, coordinated ECM across platforms, and graceful degradation for greater resilience in a system‑of‑systems environment.

This keynote will briefly explore these cutting‑edge concepts, highlighting how shared ultrabroadband AESA apertures along with their resp. RF architectures redefine detection, jamming, and electronic warfare across all domains.