Application of the SWE-to-PWE antenna diagnostics technique to an offset reflector antenna

A new antenna diagnostics technique has been developed for the DTU-ESA Spherical Near-Field Antenna Test Facility, which is operated by the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) for the European Space Agency (ESA). The technique is based on the transformation of the spherical-wave expansion (SWE) of...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IEEE antennas & propagation magazine 2008-10, Vol.50 (5), p.204-213
Main Authors: Cappellin, Cecilia, Frandsen, Aksel, Breinbjerg, Olav
Format: Magazinearticle
Language:English
Subjects:
Antenna feeds
Antenna measurements
Antennas
Aperture antennas
Current measurement
Diagnostic software
Diagnostic systems
Distortion measurement
European Space Agency
Mathematical analysis
offset reflector antenna
Offsets
Pattern analysis
plane wave expansion
Reflector antennas
spherical near-field measurements
spherical wave expansion
Studies
Surface reconstruction
Testing
Transformations
Wavelength measurement
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Summary:A new antenna diagnostics technique has been developed for the DTU-ESA Spherical Near-Field Antenna Test Facility, which is operated by the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) for the European Space Agency (ESA). The technique is based on the transformation of the spherical-wave expansion (SWE) of the radiated field, obtained from a spherical near-field measurement, to the plane-wave expansion (PWE). It allows an accurate reconstruction of the field in the extreme near-field region of the antenna under test (AUT), including the aperture field. The fundamental properties of the SWE-to-PWE transformation, as well as the influence of finite measurement accuracy, have been reported previously. We validate here the new antenna diagnostics technique through an experimental investigation of a commercially available offset reflector antenna, where a tilt of the feed horn and surface distortions were intentionally introduced. The effects of these errors were detected inthe antenna's far-field pattern, and the accuracy and ability of the diagnostic technique to subsequently identify them were investigated. Real measurement data were employed for each test case.
ISSN:1045-9243
1558-4143
DOI:10.1109/MAP.2008.4674761