DRDO Seeks Industry Partners to Build a Microwave-Weapon Evaluation System

India's Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO) has issued a Request for Proposal for an advanced S-band High-Power Microwave Integrated Evaluation System for Lethality and Damage, codenamed SHIELD, marking another step in India's efforts to build indigenous capabilities in directed-energy technology. The programme is being pursued under the Technology Development Fund scheme, which supports industry-led innovation to accelerate indigenous defence technology development.

Through SHIELD, DRDO is seeking to create an evaluation platform capable of studying the effects of high-power microwave radiation on electronic systems. The proposed system will have a modular, scalable architecture and is expected to achieve a peak electric field strength of at least 3 kV/m in the far field, intended to enable controlled evaluation of how S-band high-power microwave radiation affects electronic equipment. It is also designed to operate in pulsed mode with flexible duty cycles, allowing different electromagnetic exposure conditions to be simulated during testing.

A key component of the proposed system is Gallium Nitride-based Solid State Power Amplifier (GaN SSPA) technology, increasingly used in high-frequency, high-power electronics for its efficiency and power density. In the SHIELD architecture, the technology is intended to support the generation of high-power microwave signals while addressing the thermal and reliability challenges such systems create, alongside advanced thermal management solutions built into the platform.

The central objective of the platform is to evaluate and quantify the lethality and damage potential of S-band high-power microwave radiation against electronic systems, helping researchers understand how communications equipment, sensors and control systems respond when exposed to electromagnetic energy. Such testing infrastructure is also intended to support the development of defensive measures, helping assess how India's own communications and sensor systems could be made more resilient to similar exposure.

One notable feature outlined for SHIELD is its drone-mountable capability, intended to allow airborne testing and demonstrations. The SHIELD initiative, pursued through the Technology Development Fund, is also intended to give Indian private-sector companies and start-ups an avenue to participate in developing advanced defence technology, aligning with India's wider push for indigenous defence development under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiative.