Lichtenstein radar
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Lichtenstein radar was a German airborne radar in use during World War II.
Early FuG (Funk-Gerät) 202 Lichtenstein BC units were not deployed until 1942, and as they operated on the 75 cm wavelength (490 MHz-low UHF band) they required large Matratze (mattress) antennas. During 1943 it was improved to the FuG 212 Lichtenstein C-1 with longer range and wider angle of view. By this point in the war the British had become experts on jamming German radars. A B/C-equipped Ju 88 night fighter defected in April 1943 and landed in England, presenting a working example of the German radar for the first time. The subsequent refinement of 'Window' (aluminised-paper strips cut to a specific length swamped the radar returns, known as Düppel by the Luftwaffe, from the German town it was first found near) rendered the system almost useless for several crucial weeks.
By late 1943 the Luftwaffe was starting to deploy the greatly improved FuG 220 Lichtenstein SN-2, operating on a longer-wavelength 90 MHz (lower end of the US VHF FM broadcast band) frequency which was far less affected by electronic jamming, but this required the huge Hirschgeweih (stag's antlers) antennas that slowed the planes as much as 50 km/h. The first SN-2 set had a problem with a huge minimum range of 500 m requiring a small antenna (one-quarter of the earlier Matratze antenna array, centrally mounted on the nose of the aircraft) and a second Lichtenstein BC or C-1 radar set (FuG 202 or 212) to cover low ranges but improvements in spring 1944 led to newer SN-2 versions with lower minimum range. In July 1944 the newest version of the SN-2 radar fell into Allied hands when a fully equipped, BMW radial powered Ju 88G-1 had flown the wrong way against a landing beacon and landed in the UK by accident, with the crew not realising the mistake until it was too late to destroy the radar or the German IFF. Late 1944 the Morgenstern (Morning-star) antenna was developed and this was small enough to be fitted into the nose (of a Ju 88) covered with a wooden cone. The SN-2 was further improved to FuG 228 Lichtenstein SN-3 but saw little to no service. Jamming the SN-2 took longer, but was accomplished early late 1944/early 1945.
A 9 cm wavelength system known as FuG 240 Berlin was developed, based on captured examples of the Allies' cavity magnetron technology but saw little to no operational use.
De Havilland Mosquito night intruders were fitted with a device called Serrate to allow them to track down German night fighters from their Lichtenstein B/C, C-1 and SN-2 radar emissions, as well as a device named "Perfectos" that tracked German IFF systems.
