Scattering Preference Pyramid Classification of PolSAR Data Based on Canonical Huynen Dichotomy

Abstract:
Huynen decomposition prefers the world of basic symmetry and regularity (SR) in which we live. However, it is just this preference prevents Huynen decomposition from analyzing the non-symmetric (NS) and irregular (IR) targets. The canonical Huynen dichotomy is proposed to provide two competent supplements to Huynen decomposition by developing two other target dichotomies with the scattering preferences for IR and NS. In virtue of an adaptive combination and permutation of the scattering preferences of the canonical dichotomy, a scattering preference pyramid description of the mixed scattering is developed in this paper. The pyramid is composed of three layers to reflect three different degrees of scattering randomness. Each layer is further composed of several blocks to totally indicate ten different scattering mechanisms. The excellent performance of this scheme is demonstrated by comparing it with the widely-used entropy/α classification, and a better discrimination of radar targets is obtained.