Synthesis of Elliptically Shaped Aperiodic Antenna Arrays Subject to Complex Design Constraints

• Published in: Radio science Vol. 59; no. 5
• Main Authors: Geerarts, J. M. E., Theis, G., Smolders, A. B., Caratelli, D.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.05.2024
• Subjects: Antenna arrays; Antennas; array pattern synthesis; Beamforming; Complexity; Design; Dipoles; elliptical arrays; Synthesis
• ISSN: 0048-6604; 1944-799X; 1944-799X
• DOI: 10.1029/2023RS007914

State‐of‐the‐art conformal array pattern synthesis techniques typically suffer from a significant computational burden. This article builds upon the auxiliary array pattern synthesis technique, allowing the technique to work on elliptical contours. This deterministic method is both computationally efficient and capable of handling complex design cases with additional design constraints. In order to highlight the versatility and applicability, the method has been applied to an elliptical arc array comprised of Rampart antennas and an elliptical ring array using dipole elements. The results have been validated through full‐wave electromagnetic simulations, as well as physical measurements. Both arrays presented show good agreement with the proposed synthesis technique. Highlighting the ability to satisfy additional design constraints, such as enforcing a minimal element spacing or having a controlled beamformer‐network complexity. Plain Language Summary This work presents a fast method to calculate the placement and excitation of antennas along an elliptical contour in order to achieve the desired radiation characteristics. The technique has been validated for an array featuring complex antenna elements and for an elliptical ring array. Key Points The Auxiliary Array Pattern (AAP) formulation offers a deterministic and, thus, an inherently faster conformal array synthesis method The AAP formulation can be extended to support Elliptical contours Elliptical arrays with, for instance, Rampart or dipole elements can be quickly designed using the proposed synthesis method