Фрагмент антенной решетки для исследования характеристик волноводно-диэлектрических излучателей

Abstract

The phased antenna array radiator characteristics affect the antenna gain and its variation within the electrical scanning beam sector. In designing radiators, much attention is paid to their parameters in order to obtain the required characteristics in a given sector of the electrical scanning beam of a phased antenna array. For the experimental verification of the radiator characteristics, taking into account the mutual influence of the elements in the antenna array, a fragment of the antenna array is used where a central element is connected to the measuring stand line, and the remaining elements are loaded for matched loads. The fragment of the antenna array must meet a number of requirements: a radiator under study should be under conditions close to those of the large antenna array; elements of the fragment design should not affect the radiator characteristics; the fragment should provide a friendly connection to the measuring stand line and a possibility for arrangement in the support-rotary device. The paper proposes a design of the antenna array fragment that satisfies these requirements. The fragment of the antenna array with a hexagonal grid of the arranged elements enables experimental studies of the waveguide-dielectric radiator characteristics widely used in phased antenna arrays of centimeter and millimeter range. A rational choice of the number of radiators sufficient for taking into consideration the mutual influence of the elements in the antenna array is based on the calculation results of the radiation patterns of radiators in the antenna array of finite dimensions. The proposed design of the antenna array fragment has the minimum number of components and provides easy assembling and setting in the measuring stand, as well as allows a rapid replacement of the radiator sets. The paper gives an example of the practically implemented antenna array in the K-frequency band and presents the experimental radiation patterns of radiators to confirm the proposed design operation capability.