A Review on Ceramic and Polymer Materials for
Radome Applications
Surendra Kumar
Department of Electronics and Communication
Engineering, Sharda University
Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh- 201310, India
Email:Surendra_kumar@celindia.co.in.
Abstract—The radome acronyms words radar and dome for
communication systems. Radome is protective cover for Antenna
systems while preserving the microwave properties of the
communication system. It provides protective interface between
the missile tracking system and the atmosphere. New missile
performance capabilities to cater speed mach4 to mach5, will
render conventional radome design standards inadequate and
lead to the experiment of new materials. Thus, interest in radome
development is being renewed, and radome designers are being
challenged to advance the state of the art materials for radome
applications. Materials play an important role for design and
high performance of the radome. This article explains some of
the important aspect of the radomes materials like ceramic and
polymers for high speed, high frequency and high performance
radome applications. The ceramic and polymer composite will
also be discussed radome applications.
Keywords—ceramics, plymers, composite, mircowave,
I. INTRODUCTION
The primary function of a radome is to protect an antenna
system from the environments encountered in ground- based,
shipboard, airborne, and aerospace applications. It is also
important that a radome be designed to have minimum impact
on the electrical performance of enclosed antennas. Radomes
are generally composed of low-loss dielectrics shells, with
thickness comparable to the wavelength of operation. They are
shaped to cover the antenna and provide the internal volume
necessary for mechanical antenna scanning. If needed for the
application, they provide aerodynamic streamlining. Radomes
are used with virtually all aperture-type airborne antennas [1].
Radome design is based on the materials and construction
needed to provide adequate safety margins and acceptable
weight. Mechanical stresses are produced in radomes by
aerodynamic loading due to airflow, acceleration forces, and
sudden thermal expansion due to aerodynamic heating. In high-
speed radomes, thermal shock often causes the highest
mechanical stresses. These stresses are greatest in the because
high aerodynamic loads produce large bending moments,
which often occur near the end of missile flight and after
exposure to significant heating [2].
Other factors to be considered are humidity, blowing dust or
sand, rain, ice, snow, and moisture build-up on the outer wall.
Rain erosion is a severe problem in missile-radome operation
and can be a limitation for aircraft radomes. Lightning strikes
to aircraft are common, so metallic lightning-diverter strips are
978-1-7281-2577-0/19/$31.00
1 ©2019 IEEE
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Dr. Pallavi Gupta
Department of Electronics and Communication
Engineering, Sharda University
Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh- 201310, India
Email: Pallavi.gupta2@sharda.ac.in
used to minimize structural damage to the radome [3].
Material properties desirable for advanced missile radome
designs include [4]. A low and stable dielectric constant and
tangent loss at radio frequencies, high melting temperature, A
low coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE), high tensile
strength, high fracture toughness. Electrical properties that
makers radome transparent like, dielectric constant and loss
tangent of radome materials can vary significantly with
temperature. Thermal and mechanical properties of the
materials like Thermal conductivity, temperature coefficient of
expansion, tensile strength, fracture toughness also very wrt to
expose of high temperate exposure. Fracture toughness
together with a low CTE not only prevents stress failures but
also precludes the formation and propagation of cracks
resulting from rain and dust impact (erosion environment).
The required properties for radome materials is given below [1]
• Service temperature : Up to 1400C
• Dielectric constant : < 9:0 (5.0 is best)
• Temperature variation : < 7:0% of dielectric constant to
1260 degc
• Loss tangent to 1260C : < 0:1
• Bending strength (4 point) : > 35 MPa
II. CERAMICS FOR RADOME APPLICATIONS
It is widely recognized that ceramics are one of the most
promising structural materials for radome applications due to
its superior thermal and mechanical properties, such as high
chemical and thermal stability, good chemical inertness, high
thermal conductivity, high hardness, low density, and low
coefficient of thermal expansion. Despite the fact that
ceramic often present brittle behavior, ceramics have been
developed to achieve quasi-ductile fracture behavior and
maintain all other advantages at high temperatures. There are
various types of radomes, depending on the conditions in
which they are used. Inorganic wall materials come into their
own, particularly when organic materials fail due to the loss
of strength at higher temperatures. Most organic materials are
not suitable at 250C and even the best can only survive a
short term at 500C [3]. In general, density, dielectric,
mechanical, thermal, and environmental properties are those
of interest. Based on the type of raw material used in radome
fabrication, a brief comparison of some of the most common
candidate radome materials are given in Table1. Fabrication,
 a brief comparison of some of the most common candidate
radome materials are given in Table1. With the increase in
the speed of modern aircrafts, more superior properties of the
radome materials are required. When radomes are used at
high speeds i.e. Mach 3 to Mach 5 the required service
temperature upto1400C [6]. For higher speeds, ceramic
materials would be required, which normally include Al2O3,
slip-cast fused SiO2. It is generally agreed that a radome
material can undergo maximum change in dielectric constant
of approximately 10 per cent and still be effective. Based on
this value, alumina and Pyroceram 9606 can be used up to
Table1: Properties of the most common candidate radome materials [4]
A. Alumina
The usage of alumina (Al2O3) in radomes has been
extensively researched, and various forms of radomes made
of this substance have been used in the missiles for speeds
above Mach 2 [7]. Based on the research findings of the
Materials Research Center in the United States radomes made
of Al2O3 with purity higher than 97% can withstand at
temperatures above 1760 C. Lucalox (a translucent
Aluminum Oxide invented by GE), which is 99.9% pure, is
considered as one of the best substances based on the
aluminum oxide. By adding a little magnesium oxide to
Lucalox, the growth of grains in this substance is delayed and
a high density material is achieved [8]. Al2O3-based
ceramics are waterproof and extremely resistant to dierent
chemicals. The dielectric constant of pure aluminum oxide at
room temperature is 9.6, which drops considerably by raising
the temperature to 800 degC. The loss tangent of this material
is between 5x10e-4 to 10x10e-4. However, Al2O3-based
materials undergo substantial contraction which depends on
the amounts of adhesive and applied pressure in the casting
phase.
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approximately 1000C and fused silica to 1300 C. Note that
for the slip-cast fused silica, there is essentially no change in
dielectric constant up to 800 C, and that the change is only
7.9 per cent at 1300 C [6].
The loss tangent, can be seen to be extremely low for all of
the materials. Thus, silica is the most likely choice of
materials in applications where stable electrical properties at
elevated temperatures are of prime concern. Now we will
discuss in detail the important ceramics for radome
applications.
B. Pyrocerm
Pyroceramic is a nonporous crystalline glass material with
density of 2.42 gr/cm³. The mechanical strength and the
dielectric constant of pyroceramic do not change almost up to
700, and its loss tangent at temperatures above 750C is 0.02.
In comparison to Al2O3-based ceramics, Pyroceramic are
more stable against temperature exposure. During flights at an
altitude of 30 km and speed of Mach 5, the surface of
Pyroceramic reaches 700C.The first material that was
introduced as a pyroceramic was Pyroceram 9606
(2MgO.2Al2O3.5SiO2, cordierite). This substance is a
magnesium-aluminum silicate compound with high thermal
shock resistance and resistance against corrosion and abrasion.
This material is more resistant against corrosion than fused
silica; however dielectrically, it is not stable against
temperature variations and cannot be used at speeds higher
than Mach5. Hallse et al. have shown that a material called
Pyroceram 9603 enjoys a better thermal performance, but its
loss tangent is greater [2, 7].

C. Fused Silica
Fused silica radome manufacturers widely used fused silica or
quartz glass, which enjoys properties such as low thermal
conductivity (0.8W/m.K), low thermal expansion coefficient
(0.54-0.7*106/C), low density, suitable mechanical strength,
good resistance against thermal shock (no breakage after
more than 20 thermal shock cycles between 25C and 1000C),
and high electrical resistance [2,12,13]. Furthermore, the
fabrication of radomes using this material is done through slip
casting, which is a simple process. The properties of some of
the fused silica ceramics and composites that are reported by
different researchers are given in Table 2 [13].
Fused Density Dielectric Strength Forming
Silica constant/ tand (MPa) method
Fused Silica 1.97 3.32/0.0012 54 CIPing
Fused Silica 1.97 3.32/0.0012 64 Slip Casting
+2% Si3N4 1.96 - 37.13 Gel Casting
+3% BN 1.85 - 45 Gel Casting
+1% 2.1 3.18/ 40 Gel Casting
Nano SiO2 0.00053
Table2: The properties of some of the fused silica
ceramics and composites [13]
Compared to other materials, quartz ceramic is dielectrically
more stable at higher temperature ranges and has a low loss
tangent. The dielectric constant of this material remains
constant up to 800C and its loss tangent changes from 0.0002
at 100C to 0.0014 at 800C. The thermal conductivity of
quartz glass increases from 1.8 W/(m.K) at the temperature
range of 20-100C to 2.7 W/(m.K) at the temperature range of
20-800C [2]. As a result of these properties, fused silica is
also excellent structural and functional material in many
different fields of application such as crucibles in metallurgy
and polysilicon industry, thermal resistance materials in the
aircraft industry, and high-temperature microwave-
transparent materials. Fused silica ceramics are commonly
made by fusion of pure silica sand with a silica content of
approximately 99% [14, 15]. The properties of ceramics
based on fused silica are considerably lower than those of
glass ceramics, and these properties are controlled by
porosity.
III. POLYMERS FOR RADOME APPLICATIONS
Brief summary of the polymer based materials (including the
reinforcement fibers for composites) are provided in Table 2.
Pure polymer based monolithic thermoplastic radomes were
initially used for millimeter wave applications, which were
subsequently replaced by advanced thermoplastics owing to
superior resistances to rain erosion, moisture absorption and
impact loads of the latter (refer Table 2 for details). However,
as reflected in the Table 2, it is the thermo set resins that are
most commonly used for all types of civilian and defense
radomes, mainly owing to their easier process ability,
improved mechanical properties and significantly lower
coefficients of thermal expansion (CTE). Further, some of
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D. Boron Nitride
Boron nitride is among the materials whose properties have
been evaluated for high temperature microwave radome
usage [21]. Electrically both forms of material are suitable for
radome usage. The dense material has a dielectric constant of
near 4.4 with a very low change of dielectric constant with
temperature characteristic 0.3% per 100 C[4]. The less dense
material dielectric constant is near 3. Both materials have loss
tangents which are low. Mechanically the material is
reasonably strong. At room temperature the flexural strength
is near 100 MPa, but it falls off with temperature to near 30
MPa at 7500C [4]. It is its rather poor mechanical properties
comparative to Silicon Nitride for example which lessens this
material as a choice for radomes, for high temperatures.
Thermally the expansion coefficient is high and its
conductivity is comparative to alumina. Various forms of
boron nitride have good thermal shock resistance. The
material's rain resistance is poor due to its softness, and
would be another limiting factor in its choice for certain
environment operations.
E. Silicon Nitride
The need for having high-temperature materials for radomes
has attracted researchers’ attention to silicon nitride (Si3N4)
ceramics. This structurally important ceramic material has
excellent mechanical and thermal properties for application in
high-temperature radomes [7, 16-18]. Si3N4 ceramic is one of
the most promising inorganic radome materials combining
wave permeability, good high temperature strength, heat
insulation and corrosion resistance, good thermal shock
resistance, and a hotspot in the radome research field for its
excellent comprehensive performance [19, 20]. Addition of
certain oxides to the sintering of silicon nitride is a well-
known method for producing dense ceramics for engineering
The applications of Si3N4 depend on its molecular structure
and properties such as space gap, permeation, thermal
expansion, and hardness. These properties are themselves
influenced by the type, length and angle of molecular bonds,
and the crystalline structure and system. The dielectric
constants of -Si3N4 and -Si3N4, at room temperature, are 5.6
and 7.9, respectively, which are too high for the use of Si3N4
as a radome[12].
these thermo set matrices can even withstand temperatures to
the tune of 350°C–400°C, which is significantly higher than
the capabilities offered by most common thermoplastics.
Among the thermo set resins, epoxies are the real workhorses
for the aerospace industry. Further, the ε’ as well as tan δ
values of these materials tend to increase further with increase
in temperature. But, these problems are mitigated in some of
the special classes of polyester resins. But even then, either
the epoxies or the polyesters can at best operate at a
temperature of 150°C, which is often a major limitation for
many applications.
 Materials/ Properties Nylon Teflon Polystyrene Rohacell Epoxy Polyimide Cyanate ester Aramid PEEK
Dielectric constant 3.1 2.1 2.6 1.04 2.8 3.2 3.3 3.8 3.2
Loss tangent 0.018 0.0003 0.012 0.0017 0.005 0.005 0.007 0.01 0.003
Thermal conductivity 0.24 0.25 0.030 0.030 0.221 0.12 0.18 0.04 0.43
(W/(m.K)
TCE (10e-6 cm/degC) 72 100 70 1.6 65 110 60 3.96 45
Tensile strength, MPa 47 25 34 1 600 72 80 3600 92
Flexural Strength, MPa 85 13.4 70 1.6 112 140 89 80 125
Table 2: Typical properties of the polymers for radome applications [7, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 ]

IV. FUTURE ASPECTS OF CERAMICS AND POLYMER REFERENCES

COMPOSITES FOR RADOME APPLICATIONS
The effective thermal conductivity of a ceramics is strongly
affected by its composition, structure, intrinsic thermal
conductivities, and particle size, shape and interfacial thermal
resistance. The production cost of the ceramics is high. The
brittleness and high processing temperature of ceramics lead
to the difficulty in fabrication of complex shapes or machining
substrates during circuit fabrication. Most of the commonly
used thermo set resins and their composites can withstand an
operational temperature of less than 150°C only. The ceramic
radomes, on the other hand, have carved a niche for
themselves for conditions of temperatures in excess of 500°C,
but at the cost of higher weight and brittleness in the structure.
This present scenario leaves a window of opportunity for the
polymer composites to fill in the gap between 150°C–500°C,
thereby offering lightweight high performance radomes for
most supersonic airborne platforms. One of the most recently
explored resin systems to bridge this technology gap is the
cyanate ester resin systems.1–21 This new class of thermo set
resins cures by cyclotrimerization reaction between three
molecules of cyanate monomers to form polycyanurate
containing triazine ring. A few properties, thermal and
dielectric of these resins vis-à-vis the other common resin
systems as available from the literature are given in
determining the overall performance of the radomes built out
of their composites. Quartz is undoubtedly most suited for
high performance radomes owing to their very high silica
content, a feature that makes them extremely costly as well.
D-glass definitely stands out to be the second best choice, but
they too have the problems of low strength and high cost.
Aramid (KevlarTM) fibers have low ε’ but high tan δ values.
V. CONCLUSION
Ceramics, polymers and their Composite have been discussed
in this review article for radome applications. A combination
of polymers and ceramic fillers can effectively resolve the
processing cost as well as processing difficulties with
balanced dielectric, magnetic thermal and mechanical
properties.
VI. ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The corresponding author gratefully acknowledges the support
given by Sharda University and Central Electronics Limited
India.
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