Model to Support Signal Detection Performance of a Laser Proximity Fuze Installed on a Small Air-Defense Missile

Abstract

This paper aims to develop a quantitative model for evaluating the signal detection capability of a laser proximity fuze mounted on small air-defense missiles under strong background noise conditions. The proposed approach integrates three key components: background noise power estimation to characterize environmental effects, signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) computation to relate noise with system parameters, and probability of detection (P_d) evaluation as the primary performance metric. The formulations are established based on quantum photonics and statistical optics, while Monte Carlo simulation is employed to estimate SNR, and the likelihood-ratio test is applied to determine P_d. Numerical results indicate that, among the considered wavelengths (950 nm, 1,300 nm, and 1,550 nm), the 1,550 nm band provides the highest SNR. At a range of 20 m with a transmitted power of 0.01 W, the corresponding P_d reaches 0.76; achieving Pindings demonstrate that the proposed model can effectively support the selection of operating wavelength and transmitted power, thereby ensuring reliable signal detection performance of laser proximity fuzes in noisy environments.