Archaeometry 47, 1 (2005) 159173.

Printed in Great Britain

Oxford, 0003-813X Archaeometry ARCH February ORIGINAL 1 47 Radio-wave L. University SOMERS UK 2005 of ARTICLE ET imaging Oxford, AL. Ltd. 2005 of subsurface archaeological features Blackwell Publishing,

FIXED-FREQUENCY RADIO-WAVE IMAGING OF SUBSURFACE ARCHAEOLOGICAL FEATURES: A MINIMALLY INVASIVE TECHNIQUE FOR STUDYING ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES *
L. SOMERS,1 N. LINFORD,2 W. PENN,3 A. DAVID,2 L. URRY4 and R. WALKER5

1 Geoscan ResearchUSA, Sea Ranch, California, USA Archaeometry Branch, English Heritage Centre for Archaeology, Fort Cumberland, Eastney, Portsmouth PO4 9LD, UK 3 Department of Electrical Engineering, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 132441240, USA 4 Department of Radio Astronomy, University of California at Berkeley, Berkeley, California 947203411, USA 5 Geoscan Research, Heather Brae, Chrisharben Park, Clayton BD14 6AE, UK 2

In memoriam Tony Clark Sadly, this research marked the last eld visit to the test site that the authors were able to share with their colleague Tony Clark. His enthusiasm, experience and encouragement inspired us to complete this project that, to many, must have appeared as grown men at play in a sand pit. A new approach to subsurface exploration has been developed, based on xed-frequency radio-wave illumination from a buried transmitter. Data are collected from a buried, continuous wave source with a phase-coherent surface-scanning receiver and recorded in a digital archive from which images of the archaeological features are subsequently produced. An important feature of this approach is the opportunity to separate the data collection and archive functions, which form an uncompromised record of the site, from the more subjective image formation function. This paper reports the results of a feasibility assessment programme and discusses the future application of the method to real archaeological sites.
KEYWORDS: RAYLEIGHSOMMERFELD, PHASE COHERENCE, IMAGING, ARCHAEOLOGY, GROUND-PENETRATING RADAR

* Received 27 June 2003; accepted 18 July 2004.

INTRODUCTION

The full potential of microwave investigation techniques in archaeology has yet to be realized, as the majority of studies to date have utilized non-coherent impulse sources (e.g., Vaughan 1986; Stove and Addyman 1989; Conyers and Goodman 1997). The purpose of the present study has been to explore a fundamentally new approach that utilizes a xed-frequency continuous radio-wave source to illuminate the subsurface from below using a buried transmitter. The transmitter would be introduced beneath the target archaeological features through a minimally invasive borehole with the receiver antenna positioned on the site surface. This approach is well matched to the geometry and propagation characteristics of many archaeological sites, and offers the opportunity to image features exhibiting a contrast in conductivity or dielectric constant.
* Received 27 June 2003; accepted 18 July 2004. University of Oxford, 2005

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Many archaeological sites are characterized by a large area-to-depth geometry, and the materials and soils from which they are formed are often semi-transparent to radio waves of a suitable frequency. In addition to being semi-transparent, the electromagnetic properties of the archaeological materials alter the amplitude, phase and polarization of the incident electromagnetic radiation. The variation of these three properties allows the construction of an image in the same manner as an optical lens, and offers the potential for more detailed material recognition and in situ analysis where a diagnostic alteration of amplitude, phase or polarization occurs. Initially, it is useful to consider how the proposed imaging system differs from a conventional bistatic impulse radar (GPR). As the name suggests, an impulse GPR emits a brief pulse of electromagnetic radiation from a dipole antenna (transmitter) to penetrate below the ground surface. This pulse is comparatively broadband, containing a range of frequencies to either side of a centre frequency determined by the physical design of the antenna (e.g., Conyers and Goodman 1997, g. 8). If the transmitted pulse is incident upon a buried object with differing material properties (with respect to the transmission of electromagnetic radiation) to the surrounding soil, a reection of the pulse will be created. These secondary reections are received by a separate dipole antenna (the receiver, generally mounted together with the transmitter antenna) back at the ground surface that records both the amplitude of the reected signal and the time delay from the initial incident pulse, known as the two-way travel time. To create a three-dimensional image from such timeamplitude data, a series of measurements must be made, injecting a pulse of energy over a regular survey grid established on the ground surface. The vertical dimension or depth is obtained from the two-way travel time between the initial pulse and secondary reections, calibrated to a physical depth through an estimate of the average velocity of the electromagnetic pulse through the ground surface at the site. Such data is often displayed through a series of time slice images constructed from the horizontal variation of the reection amplitude recorded through a given window of two-way travel time across a number of closely spaced parallel traverses (e.g., Meats 1996; Conyers and Goodman 1997; David and Linford 2000; Neubauer et al. 2002). The currently proposed system differs from an impulse GPR by utilizing a continuous, rather than a pulse, source, at a xed frequency produced by a transmitter introduced by means of an invasive borehole beneath the site under investigation. Measurements are then made with a passive dipole receiver antenna over a survey grid established on the site surface. This receiver records the amplitude and phase of the signal from the buried transmitter at every sample station over the survey grid. As the energy emitted by the transmitter is continuous, there is no pulse and thus no travel time associated with secondary reections from this pulse received at the ground surface. Data from such a phaseamplitude system are more closely analogous to an optical imaging device, where a lens is used to provide a variable plane of sharply dened focus at a certain distance. Conceptually, the proposed system is analogous to an optical light transmission microscope, and Figure 1 (a) illustrates this in conventional optical terms (Gaskill 1978; Goodman 1996; Born and Wolf 1997). In the case of an optical microscope, the semi-transparent target object under investigation is introduced on a cover slide between the microscope lens and an under stage source of illumination. The image formed in the microscope eyepiece is created through the modulation, in terms of phase and amplitude, that occurs as light from the under stage source of illumination passes through the semi-transparent target object. The aperture of the microscope lens collates incident light from across the target object and produces a focused image within the eyepiece. Note that altering the focus of the lens, to better image an aspect of the target object, does not change the energy incident upon the lens aperture but reprocesses

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Figure 1 A conventional optical microscope imaging system (a), illustrating the illumination of the target object by a light source mounted below the sample stage. Light from this source is modulated, in terms of amplitude and phase, by the target object and falls on the pupil plane of the microscope lens, where it is subsequently focused into a coherent image. Note that the ability of the lens to focus on differing elements of the target object is due to the optical recomputation of the modulated light collected from the pupil plane that, for a xed sample stage and light source, remains invariant. The proposed radio-frequency (RF) implementation, to produce a eld imaging system, is shown in (b). Here, the RF source is introduced through a vertical borehole beneath the target archaeology and the pupil plane becomes the ground surface, where a scanning receiver antenna can record the modulated phase and amplitude of the illuminating source once it has passed through the subsurface. The concentric semi-circular lines on this gure represent the divergent spherical wavefront propagating from the buried RF transmitter. Coherent, focused images are subsequently produced through numerical processing of the amplitude and phase data set (in this case, using the RayleighSommerfeld integral) in a manner analogous to image formation within a conventional optical lens.

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this information to create the new image in the eyepiece. In this respect, the lens of a microscope (or any other optical system) functions as an optical computer that may be simulated by a mathematical model to demonstrate the concept of refocusing the phaseamplitude data collected over the aperture of the lens into a focused image. The proposed radio-frequency implementation of this system investigated here is illustrated in Figure 1 (b). In this case, the subject of the microscope is intended to be archaeological remains illuminated from below by means of a xed-frequency radio source introduced through a borehole from the surface. Radio waves from this source propagate up to the site surface, and their amplitude, phase and polarization are modulated by the electromagnetic properties of the subsurface, including any archaeological remains, through which they may pass. The resultant modulated wave function is recorded at the ground surface by means of a receiver antenna that records the amplitude and relative phase of the signal across a twodimensional survey area. This information is analogous to the light falling on the pupil plane of an optical microscope prior to the formation of a focused image through the viewing lens. The data recorded by the scanning receiver forms a unique digital archive that may then be visualized computationally into a focused image. One may consider such an imaging system to be merely a two-dimensional, trans-illumination methoda shadow plot, if you likemapping the combined attenuation of objects buried in the subsurface. This would, however, fail to recognize the full potential of the recorded phaseamplitude data set that may, through the use of an appropriate mathematical lens, be reprocessed into a series of images sharply focused at an increasing distance, or depth, from the ground surface. Again, by way of optical analogy, this process represents the ability of a photographer to focus his or her camera lens either on the bars of the enclosure at the zoo, or beyond these, to bring the tiger sharply into view. As with impulse ground radar, the image formed at a particular point of focus will be contaminated by the response due to features lying above and below the current depth of interest. However, the degree of image degradation will vary depending on the archaeological features present, with more intrusive materials, such as stone or brick foundations, having a much greater inuence than pits, ditches and decayed timber post-holes. Background Anthropogenic activity and processes alter the electromagnetic properties of the subsurface. Some of these alterationssuch as the introduction of wall stones that differ in conductivity or dielectric constant from the surrounding soilare intrusive. Others occur at a microscopic scale through chemical or thermal alterations of the soil particle size, compaction, magnetic permeability, moisture or soluble ion concentration. It is this record, written on the ancient landscape, that the archaeologist wishes to read. To enable this process through subsurface imaging with radio waves, the target archaeological features must introduce sufcient amplitude, phase or polarization modulation to be distinguishable from the surrounding soil and geological matrix, and the imaging system must provide a direct means of rendering these modulations as image contrast. Furthermore, the imaging system must deliver archaeologically useful lateral resolution, in terms of the physical size of the target archaeological features that may be resolved, and the effective depth of investigation. Contemporary methods of detecting and mapping the archaeological record, (e.g., Clark 1990; Scollar et al. 1990) suffer loss of lateral resolution with increasing depth of investigation. Resistivity, conductivity (EM) and impulse ground-penetrating radar (GPR) methods

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suffer due to the angular divergence of the measuring elds that they introduce into the soil, and for GPR the attenuation due to the conductivity of the sediment matrix. Magnetic survey methods suffer because of the approximate 1/r 2 decay of the eld amplitude from magnetic objects (Blakely 1995), and are often further compromised by the presence of highly magnetic structures found on the surface of urban sites that completely mask the weaker anomalies expected from archaeological features. In theory, the proposed system provides a comprehensive amplitude and phase data set for a given observation frequency, polarization and illumination geometry. The lateral resolution of the system will, if adequately sampled, be constrained only by the observation frequency used and the attenuation of the signal between the buried transmitter and the receiver on the ground surface. In addition, the amplitude and phase data have not been subject to any form of processing and represent a comprehensive archive of the physical properties of the site. These data may, therefore, be reprocessed at a later date with newly developed algorithms as these become available. To return to an optical analogy, the proposed system represents the ability to record and archive the light falling upon the aperture of camera lens (the pupil plane) before this data is processed by the lens to form an image on the lm (or digital sensor) at the image plane. Thus, should a new, higher-quality camera lens become available, then the original archived pupil plane information may be reprocessed to produce a new negative, with improved resolution over the original image.
METHOD

To demonstrate this concept, two studies have been performed, one based on a numerical (computer) model and the other on a radio-frequency eld prototype. The numerical model used a mathematical algorithm to determine the expected amplitude and phase data that would be recorded by a scanning antenna across the receiver plane. This computer-generated model allowed a range of parameters within the proposed imaging system to be simulated, such as the frequency of the radio-frequency source, prior to the development of a practical eld instrument. Information from the numerical model informed the construction of a suitable test site, in terms of the physical size of target object that might be resolved, for use with the eld system as this was partially restricted by the availability of an affordable radio-frequency transmitter. The numerical model study also provided an idealized data set, uncompromised by the inuence of either noise or attenuation, for comparison with the results of the subsequent eld prototype study. Numerical model study The numerical study examined the imaging system shown in Figure 1 (b) through the means of a mathematical model consisting of the following: (1) A source transmitter beneath the object plane, producing a diverging spherical wavefront to illuminate the target objects. (2) Target objects in the object plane, modulating the amplitude and phase of the incident, illuminating, wavefront. (3) Diffraction between the object plane and the pupil plane (the site surface). (4) Sampling of the modelled amplitude and phase in the pupil/receiver plane (the site surface) at approximately half the wavelength of the RF source. (5) The formation of a focused image from the modelled amplitude/phase data by means of the RayleighSommerfeld integral acting as a mathematical lens.

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Figure 2

A block diagram of the eld prototype study electronic components.

The modelling algorithm was used to study focus and spatial resolution in the proposed system. This allowed the inuence of many parametersfor example, the sample interval in the receiver plane, and the frequency and depth of the illuminating sourceto be studied prior to the implementation of a eld prototype. From this numerical study, it was a determined that a practical eld prototype of the imaging system could be constructed. However, note that the algorithm used by the numerical model did not account for signal attenuation in the ground surface between the source transmitter and the receiver plane. Images produced by the numerical model are presented for comparison with the results from the eld prototype study in Figures 5 and 6, which are discussed below. Field prototype study A prototype imaging instrument was implemented at 137 MHz by means of a phase-coherent radio illumination receiver system constructed with components from aircraft communication

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Figure 3 A photograph of the test site (a), showing the location of the scanning receiver antenna, the wellhead of the central vertical borehole through which the transmitter source was introduced beneath the target objects and electronic equipment. Detail of the receiver antenna (b) and transmitter antenna (c) being lowered down the borehole are also shown.

radios (Narco 457-A). Figure 2 is a schematic of this system and Figure 3 shows the electronic equipment deployed in the eld. The eld prototype study was conducted at the Hall Aggregates Sand Quarry, Lenham, Kent, UK, a site chosen for the uniformity and depth (100 m) of the coarse yellowish-green sands of the Folkestone beds sand deposits (British Geological Survey 1958) and the ability to construct a resolution test object made up from sheet metal buried at 3 m below the surface. The test site was constructed by using a 360-degree mechanical excavator to dig a 20 m 7.2 m trench to a depth of 3 m in a suitable area of previously undisturbed sand within the

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Figure 4 The test site geometry (a), showing the central vertical borehole for the transmitter source and the target objects, constructed from corrugated iron sheets, at a depth of 3 m below the site surface. A plan view detailing the dimensions of the knife-edge and two-bar object is shown in (b). The central 10 m 10 m receiver plane (site surface), from where the grid of amplitude and phase data was collected, is illustrated in both parts of this gure.

quarry. The rst target object was then constructed by laying a series of 3 m 1 m sheets of corrugated iron at the base of the trench, following the geometry illustrated in Figure 4. Two additional sheet-metal bar-type targets at an identical depth of 3 m were also constructed in a similar manner, with all of the construction trenches nally back-lled with sand, which was compressed by the mechanical excavator. The bucket of the excavator was then used to smooth the surface of the site above the target objects that would serve as the receiver plane during the eld experiment. Finally, a PVC-lined borehole was drilled through the centre of the site to a depth of 10 m and capped with a steel wellhead, to conform with site health and safety requirements. Amplitude and phase data were collected by the scanning receiver (Fig. 3 (b)) and was digitized during acquisition for subsequent use with the RayleighSommerfeld integral to form images of the sheet-metal test objects. The scanning receiver was xed to a small wooden sledge and manually manoeuvred over a 0.1 m 0.2 m sample grid across the site surface (receiver plane). Note that the buried transmitter produced a continuous signal rather than a short impulse. This allowed the scanning receiver to determine the variation of both amplitude and phase across the site by reference to a second xed receiver antenna on the surface. Whilst the dimensions selected for the sheet-metal test targets were somewhat greater than those of real archaeological objects, due to the limited resolution that can be achieved when operating at 137 MHz, it was hoped that a eld prototype would prove the practical application of the imaging system and gather essential information to assist with the development of subsequent instrumentation.

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Figure 5 Images of the one-dimensional knife-edge scan calculated from the numerical model to simulate the expected results are shown in (a) and (b) for comparison with images created from actual eld data collected from the pupil (receiver) plane of the knife-edge scan (c, d). The numerical model and actual eld data have been processed for two incident wavelengths, = 0.5 m and = 0.8 m. The y-axis of each graph represents the relative image brightness versus distance across the scan traverse (the x-axis). For the eld data, this is measured in units of millivolts from the amplitude of the received signal at the site surface, arbitrary units being used for the numerical study.

THEORY

The resulting digital archive from the eld prototype study represents the amplitude and phase data at the receiver plane, and must be processed by a suitable mathematical algorithm to act as a lens and provide a focused contrast image of the subsurface. In this case, Rayleigh Sommerfeld diffraction theory (Goodman 1996; Born and Wolf 1997) is used to characterize and model wave propagation between the object plane (target objects) and the pupil plane (site surface), as well as between the pupil plane and the nal image. As shown in Figure 1 (b), a

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Figure 6 Grey-tone images of the two-dimensional survey calculated from the numerical model to simulate the expected results are shown in (a) (d) for comparison with images created from the actual eld data (a d), focused at depths of 1 m, 3 m, 5 m and 10 m. The quality of the images created from the eld data has suffered due to a combination of instrument noise, signal attenuation and RF leakage through the transmitter power cable.

diverging spherical wavefront (represented by the concentric semi-circular lines in the gure) is launched from the origin and illuminates the object plane from below. The amplitude and phase of this wave (U0) is modulated by the archaeological targets as it passes through the object plane to the site surface. Obviously, in the current study the use of opaque sheet-metal targets will reduce the amplitude of the incident wave to zero, effectively casting a shadow on to the receiver plane at the site surface. However, real archaeological targets would exhibit

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a greater degree of transparency, as evidenced by the results of impulse GPR surveys. The RayleighSommerfeld integral is used to describe the wave function (U1) at the receiver plane (site surface): U1( x1, y1 ) = e jkr01 1 U0 ( x0 , y0 ) P( x0 , y0 ) cos(5, r @ 01) dx0 r01 j

dy0

(1)

In equation (1), U1(x1, y1) represents the complex wave function at the site surface, U0(x0, y0) represents the complex wave function in the object plane and cos(5, r @ 01) is the obliquity term. Note that a negative exponent corresponds to a diverging wave function. The scalar r01 is the distance from any point being evaluated in the image plane (x1, y1) to the running point of integration of the pupil-bounded wave function in the receiver plane (x0, y0). This distance is given by: r01 = ( x1 x0 )2 + ( y1 y0 )2 + L2 B (2)

where LB is the focal distance. Equations (1) and (2) form the basis of the numerical model used to estimate the variation of amplitude and phase in the receiver plane. The RayleighSommerfeld integral may also be used as the lens to focus the amplitude and phase data from the receiver plane for nal image formation. In this case, the pupil plane wave function is launched with the same spatial values with which it was received (U1), but with a positive exponential (converging wave function). The net effect of this model is to create a planar lens with 1:1 imaging of the complex object wave function into a complex image wave function.
RESULTS

Numerical model study Two different amplitude target objects were modelled: the rst being an opaque knife-edge, which forms a one-dimensional object; and the second being an extension of the knife-edge to include two additional opaque bars, forming a two-dimensional object. Both were chosen for their simplicity of implementation in the eld as well as in the numerical model. The relatively large object dimensions were necessitated by the chosen operating frequency and the correspondingly long wavelength. The divergent wave function for all numerical studies was calculated over a 30 m 30 m object plane and then integrated to a 10 m 10 m pupil plane (scanning receiver). The dimensions of the objects were identical in both the numerical model and the eld prototype study, as were the data sample intervals (0.1 m 0.2 m) in the receiver (pupil) plane. One-dimensional study The results of the numerical model study of the one-dimensional knife-edge calculations using the RayleighSommerfeld integrals are shown in Figures 5 (a) and 5 (b) for wavelengths of 0.5 m and 0.8 m, respectively. Both numerical models produce convincing images, with a clear distinction between the shadow caused by the attenuation of the knife-edge target and the bright, unmodulated portion of the object plane. The monochromatic nature of the image is evident in the ripples that are visible in the bright portion. The wavelengths of 0.5 m and 0.8 m were chosen as best estimates, and reect the uncertainty in the measured wavelength encountered during unsuccessful attempts to determine this directly in the eld. A polychromatic image made over a narrow range of frequencies would, of course, reduce these ripples.

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Two-dimensional study The results of the two-dimensional test object calculations using the RayleighSommerfeld integral are shown as grey-tone images in Figures 6 (a)(d) for a wavelength of 0.8 m. This wavelength was chosen as the most likely estimate based on the known frequency of the transmitter source (137 MHz) and a realistic average velocity of the wavefront in dry sand (0.11 m ns1; e.g., Reynolds 1997, table 12.3). The pupil plane wave function was calculated and subsequently imaged at a number of focal distances by altering the value of LB in equation (2) to 1 m, 3 m (the object plane), 5 m and 10 m (the illuminating transmitter plane). The images behave as expected from the optical analogy, with the objects most clearly focused at 3 m and the illuminating source sharply dened at 10 m. It is of interest to note that although the model fails to fully account for attenuation within the subsurface medium, the image amplitude decays rapidly at the edges of the plot. Indeed, the long bar object in the image focused at 3 m (top of Figure 6 (b)) is only partially visible as a linear feature of much reduced amplitude. When focused above and below the object plane (Figs 6 (a) and 6 (c)), the images become more blurred and the ability to resolve the target object is lost. In a similar manner, when focused at 10 m the buried source is clearly dened as a central bright feature (Fig. 6 (d)). This clearly demonstrates the ability to computationally form focused images of target objects at different depths. Field prototype study Figure 4 illustrates the geometry of the test site used for the one- and two-dimensional imaging surveys. In both cases, the amplitude objects were constructed from individual sheets of 3 m 1 m corrugated iron, buried at the bottom of an excavated 3 m deep trench in the sand. Considerable practical problems were encountered in the construction of the test site, which led to positioning errors and a series of small gaps throughout both the knife-edge and the bar objects. These were mainly due to the construction of the target objects from multiple corrugated iron sheets that were too easily buckled or misplaced by the bucket of the mechanical excavator. Due to the required 3 m depth for the target object trenches and the unconsolidated nature of the sand deposits, it was not possible to allow positioning of the metal sheets by hand. In addition, the back-lled sand could not be recompressed uniformly, or to its initial density and moisture content. This undoubtedly altered the conductivity and the dielectric constant above and around the sheet-metal target objects. The one-dimensional knife-edge object was constructed rst and a central 10 m deep borehole (lined with 0.1 m diameter PVC tubing) was drilled to facilitate the introduction of the transmitter (Fig. 3 (c)). Amplitude and phase data were collected at 0.1 m intervals along a single traverse across the site surface (receiver plane) perpendicular to the knife-edge sheetmetal target. Subsequently, the two additional bar objects north of the original knife-edge were added (Fig. 4) and a detailed two-dimensional area survey conducted at the same sample interval (0.1 m) along parallel traverses separated by 0.2 m. Phase and amplitude measurements were made over a 10 m 10 m area of attened sand (receiver plane), with a dipole antenna in close physical contact with the ground surface (Figs 3 (a) and 3 (b)). One-dimensional study Images based on the one-dimensional eld data, a single scan perpendicular to the knife-edge object, are shown in Figures 5 (c) and 5 (d). Wavelengths of 0.5 and 0.8 m have been assumed in the image formation process, both to permit direct comparison with the corresponding numerical model studies (Figs 5 (a) and 5 (b)) and to reect

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the uncertainty in the known wavelength of the source illumination at the site. Images formed using the (convergent) RayleighSommerfeld integral from both assumed wavelengths produce convincing step-type responses over the object, with the 0.8 m wavelength image resulting in the sharpest/steepest response at the blackwhite transition. Both eld data images exhibit a considerable degree of attenuation between the centre and the north, or bright, edge of the image, where the eld data signal falls, by station 70, to the same level as the dark shadow over the target object. This apparent loss may be due in part to complex interference effects arising from energy passing through gaps between the individual corrugated iron sheets of the knife-edge target object, caused by the construction defects mentioned above. Two-dimensional study Images based on the two-dimensional 10 m 10 m eld data array are shown as grey-tone plots in Figures 6 (a)(d), again formed by the (convergent) Rayleigh Sommerfeld algorithm at focus distances, set by LB in equation (2), of 1 m, 3 m, 5 m and 10 m at a wavelength of 0.8 m. These images have suffered from amplitude and phase distortion introduced by unwanted direct-path energy from the transmitter power cable. Neither radio-frequency decoupling lters built into the transmitter and power supply electronics nor a plug of conductive wire mesh installed inside the PVC tube, to act as a shield to absorb the RF radiation, could fully isolate this radio-frequency leakage. Furthermore, attempts to computationally reduce the effects of this corruptionfor example, through interpolation of unaffected data across the corrupted areahave been only partially successful. Data that could not be cleaned up were manually removed from the pupil plane and replaced by null values, thus reducing the density of the data set (U1) used for subsequent image formation. By way of an optical analogy, it is as if we have formed images with a lens containing an irregular central obstruction. Ignoring the central portion of the image focused at 3 m (Fig. 6 (b)), a bright rectangular feature is discernible, which suggests that both the knife-edge and the long bar to the north have been partially resolved (cf., Fig. 6 (b)). In addition, note the contrast between the two separate bright features to the west and the single bright feature in the east. This may well represent an image of the central short bar object. Despite this degradation and the signal attenuation noted above, images formed using the two-dimensional data from the eld prototype study illustrate the applicability of the proposed system. In particular, the ability to focus the eld data is clearly demonstrated by the similarity of the two images focused at 10 m on the transmitter plane (Figs 6 (d) and 6 (d)) and the resolution of the two bright anomalies to either side of the central bar target in the object plane (Figs 6 (b) and 6 (b)). Note that an exact correlation between the numerical model and the eld prototype study would be highly unexpected, due to the not inconsiderable limitations imposed by the available equipment.
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

Taken together, the numerical and eld prototype studies have demonstrated the feasibility of xed-frequency radio-wave imaging and data archive. Unavoidable design constraints namely, low-frequency operation, a cable-powered transmitter and the eld site design have compromised data quality in the prototype eld study. The resulting poor image quality, in comparison with the numerical model study, further highlights the absolute requirement for high-quality vector eld data. This could be obtained by constructing a compact, high-frequency transmitter with an integral power supply, communicating to the surface

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by means of a bre optic cable. Such a system would be free from RF leakage through a trailing power cable and could be designed to operate over a range of frequencies to further enhance the quality of the nal image. Advances in the design of modern cellular telephones demonstrate that the technology is readily available in a highly compact form that may reduce the diameter of the borehole needed to introduce the transmitter beneath the target archaeology. The choice of corrugated metal sheets for the construction of the test target was necessitated due to the low cost of the materials and ease of construction in the eld. However, the use of a conducting material will have led to the diffraction of the incident EM signal and the likelihood that the target itself will act as a resonator. This would lead to a standing wave pattern of highly unpredictable form, due to reections between the surface/air interface and the sheet-metal target. Additional reections may also have been generated between the backlled sand in the trench excavated to construct the target and the more consolidated, undisturbed sand surrounding the site. It is possible that this resonance introduced an interfering reection that may account for the sharp attenuation of response recorded in the knife-edge eld data (Figs 5 (c) and 5 (d)). A potential solution to these problems could possibly have been to use an RF-absorbent material, such as is used to line anechoic chambers for antenna testing. However, the cost and likely thickness (> 1 m) of the RF material required precluded its use at this preliminary stage of research. More generally, the construction of a test site containing archaeological targets (e.g., ditches, pits, post-holes etc.) is complicated by the series of interrelated processes (erosion, deposition, physical, biological and geochemical changes) that occur over an extended period of time, all of which will alter the refractive index of both the archaeological features and the surrounding soils. Future work will address data quality by a combination of equipment design and eld method optimization. For example, a thin layer of smoothed sand overlaying the site surface can be used to minimize the micro-topographic induced phase defects, as well as to provide an antenna impedance-matching benet. Both transmitter and receiver antenna optimization will consider the power pattern and polarization issues. For example, a multi-channel receiver may be deployed to simultaneously record the polarization of the signal from an array of antennae, each orientated at a different angle with respect to the sampling transect. The use of a continuous wave as opposed to an impulse source has also been questioned and may be justied through the aim of investigating the application of classic optical imageforming algorithms, such as the RayleighSommerfeld integral used here, for the reconstruction of ground radar data. In this case, a continuous wave system allowed both the phase and the amplitude to be determined with ease, and an increased signal-to-noise ratio to be obtained through long-duration exposure at each measurement point. Further development of the system would certainly aim to increase the range of frequencies used to illuminate the target features. Such systems will certainly be considered during any future development of this methodology. In the longer term, image formation and analysis algorithms research will dominate the development of this method. Propagation path inhomogeneities must be assessed and incorporated into the image formation process. One possible approach would use polyfrequency operation from multiple transmitter locations, combined with iterative propagation path modelling. In situ identication of archaeological materials by means of phase (dielectric permittivity) and amplitude (electrical conductivity) contrast imaging and analysis will also be examined. Assuming that the technical limitations can be overcome, the archaeological potential of the proposed imaging system is worthy of further considerations. This system will always require

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a minimal degree of intervention to introduce the transmitter source beneath the target archaeology, but this should not necessarily limit the application of the technique, particularly if is applied to a site in advance of partial excavation. In practice, this will require a number of vertical boreholes to be drilled through the site at a spacing determined by physical factors, such as the depth of the archaeological targets to be imaged and the attenuation of the illuminating RF source by the subsurface (largely determined through the conductivity of the site). Conventional geophysical techniques, such as earth resistance surveys and impulse ground-penetrating radar, may also be employed to determine the most suitable site for the boreholes; for example, to avoid masonry wall footings. A grid of boreholes at a 2 m spacing may well prove necessary for use on sites with clayrich, high-conductivity soils. However, a small-diameter transmitter with an integral power supply could be constructed for this purpose and introduced beneath by means of a standard hand auger for soil sampling. Obviously, considerable information could also be obtained from the boreholes during their construction, including the recovery of soil samples for detailed physical (e.g., magnetic susceptibility and conductivity) and environmental investigations (e.g., archaeobotanical analysis). Combined with an automated scanning receiver antenna on the ground surface, the system should prove sufciently practical to allow data acquisition from reasonable sized areas, particularly within an urban context, where the application of conventional geophysical techniques is often highly impaired.

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