In a collaborative effort lead by the University of Southampton, scientists have developed a new type of radar system that can detect hidden surveillance equipment and explosives.

According to a press release, the new technology is called twin inverted pulse radar (TWIPR) and it can identify electronic devices found in explosives and surveillance devices.

The researchers were inspired to develop the technology by how dolphins use bubble nets in hunting their prey. Lead by Southampton's Institute of Sound and Vibration professor Tim Leighton, scientists from the University College London and Cobham Technical Services assisted in the study, published Wednesday in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society A.

The technology for TWIPR is also inspired by Leighton's previous work in developing twin inverted pulse sonar (TWIPS). Both are inspired by a dolphin's ability to use sonar to track and capture prey while being able to distinguish their target from surrounding clutter.

"As with TWIPS, the TWIPR method distinguishes linear scatterers from nonlinear ones," Leighton said. "However, in scenarios for which TWIPS was designed, the clutter scatters nonlinearly and the target linearly - while in situations using TWIPR, these properties are reversed."

In a test to find out how effective the new radar system is, the researchers had the device try to identify a "target" amidst "clutter." The TWIPR's signals for the target were 100,000 times more powerful than those for the clutter.

"Certain electronic components can scatter radar signals nonlinearly if driven by a sufficiently strong radar signal, in contrast to naturally occurring objects which tend to scatter linearly," Leighton said. "In addition to the applications discussed above, such technology could be extended to other radiations, such as magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and light detection and ranging (LIDAR), which, for example, scatters nonlinearly from combustion products, offering the possibility of early fire detection systems."