Abstract
Reconfigurable and deployable antenna arrays are required communications and remote sensing onboard small satellites/CubeSats. There is also a need for packing before launch due to the limited payload space for exo-atmospheric deployments. In this context, origami-based aperture packing and unpacking is relevant and attractive for low-volume storage. However, after several physical morphing cycles, origami apertures may not maintain the performance exhibited by fixed apertures. That is, origami-based antenna arrays are likely to suffer from reduced gain and polarization purity. Therefore, physical effects caused by origami folding should be analytically incorporated into the design. This paper proposes a statistical analysis to study the gain performance of deployable ultra-wideband Miura-ori apertures by including geometrical errors inherent to a partially deployed state. A closed-form expression of the gain degradation is derived and verified using full-wave simulations.
Highlights
There is a growing need for RF designs that are modular, deployable, and reconfigurable to accommodate smaller space platforms
This paper focuses on statistical analysis over elements positioning errors for Miura-fold Tightly Coupled Dipole Arrays (TCDA)
The performance of partially deployed Miura-ori TCDAs was investigated in this paper
Summary
There is a growing need for RF designs that are modular, deployable, and reconfigurable to accommodate smaller space platforms. Phased array antennas feature high gain, beam steering, and multi-beam capabilities, empowering miniature radars and remote sensing platforms with reduced payload costs [4] In this context, origami-based antennas are attractive candidates to address the limited payload weight and space onboard small satellites [5,6]. This expression was verified with full-wave simulations for a 12 × 12 elements TCDA. The proposed TCDA architecture is the first of its kind This is the first time that position errors inherent to origami designs are considered for phased arrays. Possible methods to compensate for such errors are discussed
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