Characterization of effects of periodic and aperiodic surface distortions on membrane reflector antennas

The focus of this paper is to characterize the effects of periodic and aperiodic surface distortions on the performance of membrane reflector antennas. Since the surface of this class of reflector antennas is very thin, it is susceptible to various types of periodic and aperiodic distortions. The particular antenna dimensions used for this study are similar to the specifications for the JPL/UCLA half scale model of second generation precipitation radar (PR-2) mission reflector. Analytical expressions are introduced to model periodic and aperiodic surfaces and based on these models the effects of distortions on the radiation performance of the antenna are simulated. Aperiodic distortions are more realistic cases of distortions due to the fact that the period of the distortions is not constant through out the reflector surface. For each case, far-field patterns of the reflector are simulated and it is shown that closed-form expressions can then be derived which result in a very efficient computational method to predict some of the unique features of these patterns including location and level of observed grating lobes. Furthermore, based on spatial Fourier analysis of the surface distortion, it is shown that deviation from periodicity in the distortions of reflector surface results in lowering these grating lobes. Parametric studies have been performed to provide design guidelines for acceptable surface behavior for large deployable membrane reflector antennas for future space borne missions.     

大型天线表面精度实时检测

介绍一种大型天线表面精度实时检测仪,它可以检测出天线表面形变的位置和大小,通过实时调整天线面板,从而大大改善大型反射面天线的系统性能。     

Application of spherical near-field measurements to microwaveholographic diagnosis of antennas

Microwave diagnosis of antennas is considered as a viable tool for the determination of reflector surface distortions and location of defective radiating elements of array antennas. A hybrid technique based on the combination of the spherical near-field measurements and holographic metrology reconstruction is presented. The measured spherical near-field data are first used to construct the far-field amplitude and phase patterns of the antenna on specified regularized u-v coordinates. These data are then utilized in the surface profile reconstruction of the holographic technique using a fast-Fourier-transform (FFT)/iterative approach. Results of an experiment using a 156-cm reflector antenna measured at 11.3 GHz are presented for both the original antenna and the antenna with four attached bumps. Several contour and gray-scaled plots are presented for the reconstructed surface profiles of the measured antennas. The recovery effectiveness of the attached bumps has been demonstrated. The hybrid procedure presented is used to assess the achieved accuracy of the holographic reconstruction technique because of its ability to determine very accurate far-field amplitude and phase data from the spherical near-field measurements     

Secondary pattern and focal region distribution of reflector antennas under wide-angle scanning

A new numerical method, Fourier-Bessel series techniques, has been developed to investigate the far-field pattern and focal region distribution of reflector antennas under wide-angle scanning. In this Fourier-Bessel series technique, the current on the reflector surface is first expanded in terms of elementary sinusoidal functions via the well established fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm and the surface integration involved in physical optics integration is then carried out analytically. The derivation of Fourier-Bessel series and its convergence as applied to parabolic reflectors are described. The secondary patterns and focal region distributions of a parabolic reflector withF/D = 0.48and scanning up to 48 beamwidths are presented.     

Optimal surface adjustment of Haystack antenna

The primary reflector panels of the 37-m (120-ft) diameter Haystack antenna are prestressed to form an integrated parabolic shell of revolution. The adjustment mechanisms of the reflector surface are highly interacting, and the region of influence of each adjustment mechanism is large and intersects in a major way the influence regions of other adjustment mechanisms. The influence surface for each adjustment is computed using a detailed finite-element model of the antenna and the reflector structures. The optimal adjustments, i.e. the adjustments that minimize surface RMS, are obtained using the computed influence surfaces by solving a quadratic programming problem. The resolution of holography introduces errors in the holography map, but the resulting error in the computed adjustments are eliminated by using, in lieu of the actual influence surfaces, the transformed influence surfaces obtained by the convolution of the actual influence surfaces with the holography resolution function. The procedure, which was used to reduce surface RMS of the Haystack from 639 micron (25.1 mil) to 194 micron (7.6 mil), is applicable to other antennas     

Subreflectarrays for Reflector Surface Distortion Compensation

With the increasing interest in the applications of large deployable reflector antennas operating at high frequencies, the requirement on the reflector surface accuracy becomes more demanding. Thermal effects inevitably cause certain reflector surface distortions, thus degrading the overall antenna performance. This paper introduces a novel reflector surface distortion compensation technique using a subreflectarray and presents detailed discussions. A microstrip reflectarray is used as a subreflector, illuminated by a primary feed. By properly adjusting the additional phase shift provided by the subreflectarray, the aperture phase errors caused by the main reflector surface distortions are compensated, resulting in a considerably improved antenna performance. As an example, a distorted 20-m offset parabolic reflector antenna operating at X-band is successfully compensated by a subreflectarray, and the simulation results are compared with those obtained by array feed and shaped subreflector compensation techniques. The microstrip subreflectarray is low-profile, lightweight, and cost-effective. Only one primary feed is required, and a reconfigurable design can be achieved if electronically reconfigurable reflectarray elements are adopted.      

不同参数超宽带反射面天线系统辐射特性

在超宽带反射面天线设计中,首要问题是馈电天线的方向图与反射器匹配。以往在频域上对反射面天线的研究发现,当馈源天线方向图给出约-11 dB的边缘照射时,反射面天线可实现其最佳性能。在参数化模拟了作为馈源的透射电子显微镜(TEM)喇叭天线方向图特性的基础上,根据反射面天线的频域设计准则,相应地加入合适的超宽带反射面天线,对其远场辐射特性进行模拟计算。为了获得尽可能大的远场辐射场,采用计算机仿真技术(CST)数值模拟软件,在0 GHz~1 GHz频率范围内模拟了以不同参数TEM喇叭天线作馈源的超宽带反射面天线的远场辐射特性,并在时域上对其结果进行分析。模拟结果表明,由于其相位中心的不确定性,作为馈源的TEM喇叭天线无法与反射面天线完全匹配,其沿着反射面天线主轴移动时产生的反射面口径场相位和幅度的变化影响着远场辐射场的变化,TEM喇叭天线的遮挡效应也不容忽视。     

A transform technique for computing the radiation pattern of prime-focal and Cassegrainian reflector antennas

An efficient numerical method based on the use of the fast Fourier transform (FFT) algorithm is developed for computing radiation patterns of aperture antennas with given aperture distributions. The method is also readily applicable to the problem of computing the radiation pattern of paraboloidal reflector antennas when the induced surface currents on the surface of the reflector are known. Using an efficient launching and scanning scheme for subreflector analysis, the method is extended to a Cassegrainian reflector antenna system.     

Nonuniform sampling techniques for antenna applications

Recent investigations have demonstrated that uniform sampling techniques can be effectively applied for construction of far-field patterns of antennas. There are, however, many circumstances for which it may not be practical to directly utilize uniform sampling techniques. A two-dimensional sampling technique which can employ irregularly (nonuniformly) spaced samples (amplitude and phase) in order to generate the complete far-field patterns is presented. The technique implements a matrix inversion algorithm which depends only on the nonuniform sampled data point locations and with no dependence on the actual field values at these points. A powerful simulation algorithm is presented to allow a real-life simulation of many reflector/feed configurations and to determine the usefulness of the nonuniform sampling technique for the co-polar and cross-polar patterns. Additionally, an overlapped window concept and a generalized error simulation model are discussed to identify the stability of the technique for recovering the field data among the nonuniform sampled data. Numerical results are tailored for the pattern reconstruction of a 20-m offset reflector antenna operating atL-band. This reflector is planned to be used in a proposed measurement concept of large antennas aboard the space shuttle, whereby it would be almost impractical to accurately control the movement of the shuttle with respect to the radio frequency (RF) source in prescribed directions in order to generate uniform (u, v) sampled points. Also, application of the nonuniform sampling technique to patterns obtained using near-field measured data is demonstrated. Finally, results of an actual far-field measurement are presented for the construction of patterns of a reflector antenna from a set of nonuniformly distributed measured amplitude and phase data.     

Application of spherical wave expansions to reflector antennasusing truncated field data

The electromagnetic field radiated by paraboloidal and hyperboloidal reflector antennas excited by an azimuthally independent, linearly polarized source is considered. The electromagnetic field is sampled on a spherical surface in order to numerically generate a set of spherical wave mode coefficients which, in turn, are used to compute antenna patterns. Patterns are produced in the near- and far-field regions based on both full and partial, or truncated, near- and far-field data as a function of the antenna parameters and the truncation angle location. The similarity of the patterns obtained from truncated field data to the untruncated patterns is found to depend on the pattern level at the truncation point, the location of the truncation point, the antenna parameters, and the radial distance between the spherical surfaces on which the electromagnetic field is sampled and produced     

Unfurlable satellite antennas: A review

A review of unfurlable satellite antennas is presented. Typical application requirements for future space missions are first outlined. Then, US and European mesh and inflatable antenna concepts are described. Precision deployables using rigid panels or petals are not included in the survey.RF modelling and performance analysis of gored or faceted mesh reflector antennas are then reviewed. Finally, both on ground and in orbitRF test techniques for large unfurlable antennas are discussed.     

FFT applications to plane-polar near-field antenna measurements

The four-point bivariate Lagrange interpolation algorithm was applied to near-field antenna data measured in a plane-polar facility. The results were sufficiently accurate to permit the use of the FFT (fast Fourier transform) algorithm to calculate the far-field patterns of the antenna. Good agreement was obtained between the far-field patterns as calculated by the Jacobi-Bessel and the FFT algorithms. The significant advantage in using the FFT is in the calculation of the principal plane cuts, which may be made very quickly. Also, the application of the FFT algorithm directly to the near-field data was used to perform surface holographic diagnosis of a reflector antenna. The effects due to the focusing of the emergent beam from the reflector, as well as the effects of the information in the wide-angle regions, are shown. The use of the plane-polar near-field antenna test range has therefore been expanded to include these useful FFT applications     

Compensation of reflector antenna surface distortion using an arrayfeed

Various aspects of reflector surface distortion compensation are explored by first assuming the reflector distortion is given and then designing the compensating feed array. The sensitivity of boresight directivity to changing surface distortion parameters for fixed feed-array geometries is examined. It is found that feed array compensation is feasible only for distortions with low spatial frequency content, such as those distortions induced by thermal and gravitational effects. The optimum directivity methods for determining element excitation is found to yield slightly better values of directivity than those for the conjugate field matching (CMF) technique. However, the CFM technique has, in general, much lower sidelobe levels and lends itself to simple realization in hardware. In view of these results, distortion compensation using an array feed is concluded to be a reasonable approach to improving antenna performance for large, space-based reflector antennas that are not easily accessible for tuning and have time-dependent surface distortions     

A sparse data fast Fourier transform (SDFFT)

A multilevel algorithm that efficiently Fourier transforms sparse spatial data to sparse spectral data with controllable error is presented. The algorithm termed "sparse data fast Fourier transform" (SDFFT) is particularly useful for signal processing applications where only part of the k-space is to be computed - regardless of whether it is a regular region like an angular section of the Ewald sphere or it consists of completely arbitrary points scattered in the k-space. In addition, like the various nonuniform fast Fourier transforms, the O(NlogN) algorithm can deal with a sparse, nonuniform spatial domain. In this paper, the parabolic reflector antenna problem is studied as an example to demonstrate its use in the computation of far-field patterns due to arbitrary aperture antennas and antenna arrays. The algorithm is also promising for various applications such as backprojection tomography, diffraction tomography, and synthetic aperture radar imaging.     

Panel setting from microwave holography by the method of successiveprojections

Microwave holography is an established technique for measuring the surface accuracy of large reflector antennas. It suffers from the disadvantage that the resulting surface error map is spatially bandlimited. Most large reflectors are constructed with panels, and misaligned panels give discontinuities in the surface error which cannot be resolved. This can lead to incorrect assessment of panel positions. Significant improvement can be obtained by recognizing at the outset that the reflector surface is approximated by a collection of individual rigid panels. The method of successive projections is used to incorporate information about the panel boundaries into the data reduction process. It has been applied successfully to measured data for a 26-m diameter radiotelescope, and an investigation of a large number of simulated experiments indicates that good results maybe achieved while minimizing measurement time     

Reflector antenna fields--An exact aperture-like approach

A new computational approach is presented which allows fast analysis of radiation from large reflector antennas. For an aperture a Fourier transform (FT) relationship does exist between far-field and aperture distribution. Accordingly, the far field can be exactly reconstructed from the knowledge of approximately one sample per lobe (Shannon-Whittaker theorem applied at Nyquist rate). The finite reflector curvature introduces an extra factor in the radiation integral so that the radiation integral is no longer a FT. In order to overcome this difficulty a new pseudosampling expansion, which explicitly takes into account the extra factor, is developed. For parabolic reflector the sampling functions are related to the Fresnel integrals, and the far field can be exactly reconstructed in terms of aperture far-field samples, which can be computed using the fast Fourier transform (FFT). Numerical computations and error analysis show the excellent performance of the method, which can be generalized to deal with arbitrary reflector surfaces and near-field evaluation.     

Physical optics analysis of four-reflector antenna

A four-reflector physical optics analysis procedure is presented. Theoretical characteristics of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration/Jet Propulsion Laboratory (NASA/JPL) 64 m antennas computed from this procedure were found to be in excellent agreement with experimental observations. TheS-band horn fields will subsequently be carried through all four reflectors (resulting in a transmission viewpoint of final antenna system beams) to account fully for all nearfield, cross polarization, and higher order mode generation effects caused by various intentional asymmetries in geometry. This appears to be the first time such a complete and rigorous analysis has been performed on such a complex antenna system. The analysis techniques presented are useful in many ongoing ground station antenna research and development efforts, including high-efficiency shaped reflector and beam waveguide feed designs and microwave metrology (holography) applied to large reflector surface measurements.     

On the characterization of a reflector impulse radiating antenna (IRA): full-wave analysis and measured results

There is a growing demand for impulse radiating antennas (IRAs) to receive and transmit short pulses. The basic concepts of IRA are reviewed and the far-field pattern versus frequency of an ideal IRA is characterized based on the fundamental properties of IRA. It is shown that the transmitted pulse is ideally in the form of a time derivative of the input pulse. The physical optics simulation results show that the far-field characteristics of a parabolic reflector are very close to an ideal IRA if it is fed properly. The reflector IRA was constructed, analyzed and measured at UCLA. The near-field and far-field characteristics of the reflector IRA are studied using both the method of moments (MoM) full-wave simulations and the frequency domain measurements. In this paper, the radiation mechanism of the reflector IRA is studied using a detailed current distribution on the parabolic reflector and the feeding structure at different frequencies. Applying either the calculated current distribution on the reflector IRA or the measured near-field results, it is seen that the aperture field intensity of the parabolic reflector is not the same in the two principle planes and as a result the beam-widths in the two principle planes are different. The far-field patterns of the antenna are measured and the calculated far-field patterns support the measured results. The calculated current distribution results provide a guideline on how to properly change the feeding structure to achieve a more uniform aperture field and increase the antenna radiation efficiency.     

High resolution three-dimensional microwave imaging of antennas

A procedure for imaging antenna currents that uses a relationship between the radiated far-field hemisphere and the Fourier transform domain of the source current density distribution is presented. The technique is applied to an array of two orthogonal waveguides, a slotted waveguide array and a reflector antenna. In each case the radiated far-field hemisphere is inverted to produce a high-resolution volumetric image of the antenna currents. Polarization discrimination is demonstrated as is the ability of the technique to `see behind' blockages by defocusing the foreground. It is shown that accurate distribution is available from the reconstructed image. Selective editing of the Fourier domain of the current distribution is performed to suppress unwanted artifacts in the reconstruction     

A surface distortion analysis applied to the hoop/column deployablemesh reflector antenna

A practical approach is demonstrated for the deterministic analysis of surface distortions in reflector antennas, based on a first-order approximation to the aperture field phase. Measured pattern results from the 15-m-diameter hoop/column deployable mesh reflector antenna are used to demonstrate the accuracy which can be obtained with this surface distortion analysis. The only practical limitation of the first-order approximation is determined by the slope derivations of the distorted surface from the best-fit paraboloid