A novel technique for the derivation of building layovers is presented. It makes use of the behaviour of the geocoding
processing stage embedded in an interferometric SAR processor for this particular case. It is shown how layover pixels create a regular pattern in the range mapping matrices, with a multiple mapping of a single SAR pixel for different DEM
cells. The exploitation of these patterns yields a generation of a layover map without the use of external supports. The
integration in an interferometric processor with a limited additional computational load and the capability to isolate
building signatures are additional benefits. The algorithm is tested on a TanDEM-X spotlight acquisition over Berlin
(Germany)
