Abstract
A novel compact and highly efficient dual-polarized horn-like antenna is presented. It exploits a radiating aperture that is fed by four smaller waveguides via a quad-furcated junction. The antenna also comprises the full feed network for the feed waveguides including an integrated 4-way orthomode power divider. Design principles are described in detail and illustrated by means of an example involving an antenna with aperture size of 2.6λ0×2.6λ0 (λ0 the wavelength at the central frequency of operation) intended primarily for Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellites. The antenna feed was designed to comply with the Additive Manufacturing rules and exhibits aperture efficiency levels close to the theoretical maximum ones over the entire transmit Ku band (10.7 -12.75 GHz), while at the same time its profile is highly compact (6.4λ0). The measured results of a prototype 3D-printed in Selective Laser Melting (SLM) verified experimentally the calculated high aperture efficiency (over 90%). The total antenna feed attains return loss > 19 dB and maximum cross-polarization isolation (XPI) > 24 dB over a bandwidth of 18%. In light of the favorable electrical performances and compact size, the proposed solution constitutes an appealing alternative to profiled (or spline) horns for satellite antenna systems used either as reflector feeds or direct radiating arrays.
Highlights
A novel compact and highly efficient dual-polarized horn-like antenna is presented
Ally outgassing) as well as requirements for supplementary treatment linked with electrostatic discharge (ESD) effects prevent their use when it comes to spaceborne applications
We present the Quad-Furcated Profiled Horn Antenna (Q-FPHA) which is a new approach to address the requirement for simultaneously highly efficient, broadband and compact horns
Summary
A novel compact and highly efficient dual-polarized horn-like antenna is presented. It exploits a radiating aperture that is fed by four smaller waveguides via a quad-furcated junction. Horn antennas are commonly deployed as feed elements for reflectors, in phased arrays, as well as in calibration and gain measurements [1] Their wide range of applicability is attributed to their excellent RF performance such as high gain, broad bandwidth and very low losses. The advent of broadband connectivity via satellites is presently driving the development of high performance multibeam antenna architectures including direct radiating arrays (DRAs) or array fed reflectors (AFR) [2]. These applications typically call for dual-polarization, low cross-polarization, rotationally symmetric radiation patterns and high powerhandling capability. According to the state-of-the-art design principles [18], square spline-profile horns with aperture sizes around
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