Planar near-field to far-field transformation using an equivalentmagnetic current approach

An alternative method is presented for computing far-field antenna patterns from near-field measurements. The method utilizes the near-field data to determine equivalent magnetic current sources over a fictitious planar surface that encompasses the antenna, and these currents are used to ascertain the far fields. Under certain approximations, the currents should produce the correct far fields in all regions in front of the antenna regardless of the geometry over which the near-field measurements are made. An electric field integral equation (EFIE) is developed to relate the near fields to the equivalent magnetic currents. The method of moments is used to transform the integral equation into a matrix one. The matrix equation is solved with the conjugate gradient method, and in the case of a rectangular matrix, a least-squares solution for the currents is found without explicitly computing the normal form of the equation. Near-field to far-field transformation for planar scanning may be efficiently performed under certain conditions. Numerical results are presented for several antenna configurations     

Adaptive processing using a single snapshot for a nonuniformlyspaced array in the presence of mutual coupling and near-fieldscatterers

This paper presents an adaptive technique to extract the signal of interest (SOI) arriving from a known direction in the presence of strong interferers using a single snapshot of data. The antenna elements in this method can be nonuniformly spaced and there can be mutual coupling between them. In addition, near-field scatterers can also be present. First, the voltages induced in the antenna elements of the array due to interferers, mutual coupling between the elements, and near-field scatterers is preprocessed by applying a transformation matrix to these voltages through a rigorous electromagnetic analysis tool. This electromagnetic preprocessing technique transforms the voltages that are induced in a nonuniformly spaced array containing real antenna elements to a set of voltages that will be produced in a uniform linear virtual array (ULVA) containing omnidirectional isotropic point radiators. In the transformation matrix we would like to include various electromagnetic effects like mutual coupling between the antenna elements, presence of near-field scatterers and the platform effects on which the antenna array is mounted. This transformation matrix when applied to the actual measured voltages yields an equivalent set of voltages that will be induced in the ULVA. A direct data domain least squares adaptive algorithm is then applied to the processed voltages to extract the SOI in the presence of interferers. Limited numerical examples are presented to illustrate the novelty of the proposed method     

Far-field performance of linear antennas determined from near-fielddata

The main plane far-field radiation pattern of an antenna under test from the corresponding main plane near-field data, using a circular-line acquisition, is presented. The method is based on the reconstruction of equivalent magnetic currents (EMCs) using decoupled integral equations and one-dimensional source components. The resultant fast procedure is applicable to linear and quasilinear array antennas. Experimental data results and comparison with complete spherical acquisition and center-line acquisition are presented     

Antenna far-fields from planar acquisition using micro-genetic algorithms

A method for modelling the radiation of an antenna under test from planar near-field data using equivalent magnetic currents (EMC) is presented. Micro-genetic algorithms are used to optimise each component of the EMC. Numerical results of near-field to far-field transformation are reported and discussed.     

Near-field to near/far-field transformation for arbitrarynear-field geometry utilizing an equivalent electric current andMoM

Presented here is a method for computing near- and far-field patterns of an antenna from its near-field measurements taken over an arbitrarily shaped geometry. This method utilizes near-field data to determine an equivalent electric current source over a fictitious surface which encompasses the antenna. This electric current, once determined, can be used to ascertain the near and the far field. This method demonstrates the concept of analytic continuity, i.e., once the value of the electric field is known for one region in space, from a theoretical perspective, its value for any other region can be extrapolated. It is shown that the equivalent electric current produces the correct fields in the regions in front of the antenna regardless of the geometry over which the near-field measurements are made. In this approach, the measured data need not satisfy the Nyquist sampling criteria. An electric field integral equation is developed to relate the near field to the equivalent electric current. A moment method procedure is employed to solve the integral equation by transforming it into a matrix equation. A least-squares solution via singular value decomposition is used to solve the matrix equation. Computations with both synthetic and experimental data, where the near field of several antenna configurations are measured over various geometrical surfaces, illustrate the accuracy of this method     

Antenna Modeling Based on a Multiple Spherical Wave Expansion Method: Application to an Antenna Array

A method to derive an equivalent radiation source for planar antennas is presented. This method is based on spherical near-field (NF) data (measured or computed) to ascertain an equivalent set of infinitesimal dipoles placed over the main antenna aperture. These produce the same antenna radiation field, both inside and outside the minimum sphere enclosing the antenna. A spherical wave expansion (SWE) of the NF data is written in terms of infinitesimal dipoles using a transition matrix. This matrix expresses the linear relations between the transmission coefficients of the antenna and the transmission coefficients of each dipole. The antenna a priori information are used to set the spatial distribution of the equivalent dipoles. The translational and rotational addition theorems are exploited to derive the transmission coefficients of the dipoles. Once the excitation of each dipole is known, the field at any aspect angle and distance from the antenna is rapidly calculated. Computations with EM simulation data of an antenna array illustrate the reliability of the method.      

Equivalent radiation source of 3D package for electromagnetic characteristics analysis

An equivalent radiation source method is proposed to characterize electromagnetic emission and interference of complex three dimensional integrated circuits (IC) in this paper. The method utilizes amplitude-only near-field scanning data to reconstruct an equivalent magnetic dipole array, and the differential evolution optimization algorithm is proposed to extract the locations, orientation and moments of those dipoles. By importing the equivalent dipoles model into a 3D full-wave simulator together with the victim circuit model, the electromagnetic interference issues in mixed RF/digital systems can be well predicted. A commercial IC is used to validate the accuracy and efficiency of this proposed method. The coupled power at the victim antenna port calculated by the equivalent radiation source is compared with the measured data. Good consistency is obtained which confirms the validity and efficiency of the method.     

一种减小相控阵天线球面近场测量截断误差的方法

在相控阵天线球面近场测量中,有限扫描面和相控阵天线波束扫描将会引起较大的截断误差.为了解决这一问题,提出利用基于遗传算法参数优化的余弦窗函数对近场数据进行加权处理的方法来有效减小截断误差.以半波振子组成的矩形平面阵作为待测天线,对相控阵天线球面近场测量进行了计算机模拟.模拟结果表明,通过对近场数据进行加余弦窗的处理并用遗传算法对参数进行优化能够大大减小相控阵天线波束扫描时的有限扫描面截断误差,从而证实了文中所提出方法的正确性和有效性.     

Radial field retrieval in spherical scanning for currentreconstruction and NF-FF transformation

A near-field to far-field (NF-FF) transformation is addressed for the case of spherical scanning using equivalent magnetic currents (EMCs) and matrix methods. It is based on the decoupling of the field components and the iterative retrieval of the radial component of the electric field. The technique is applied for far-field calculation as well as for the estimation of the current distribution of the antenna under test (AUT) using spherical near-field facilities. Results from measured near-field data of several antennas are presented and compared to those of the analytical solution via a spherical wave mode expansion method     

A reactively loaded aperture antenna array

The use of variable reactive loads to control the beam direction of an antenna array consisting ofNclosely spaced waveguide-backed dielectric-filled rectangular slots is considered. Only the center waveguide is driven (no complex feed network is required for the array), and the other waveguides are short circuited at specified distances to provide reactive loading. The solution uses the method of moments applied to the integral equation for the equivalent magnetic current in the aperture region. The initial, design of the array is obtained by resonating the complex excitation voltages required for maximum gain with all of the elements driven. This is then improved by an optimum seeking univariate search method. Computed results are given for seven- and fifteen-element aperture arrays.     

Analysis of cavity-backed aperture antennas with a dielectricoverlay

A full-wave analysis of cavity-backed aperture antennas with a dielectric overlay is presented. The theoretical approach uses a closed-form dyadic Green's function in the spectral domain. The aperture equivalent magnetic currents are obtained using the surface equivalence theorem and an integral equation is obtained by matching the fields across the aperture. The moment method applied in spectral domain analysis is employed to solve the integral equation for the equivalent magnetic currents with proper combination of subdomain or entire domain expansion functions. Numerical results include the aperture field distribution and antenna parameters such as input impedance, bandwidth, and efficiency. A set of measurements data is compared with results based on the theoretical work     

Radiation and scattering from infinite periodic printed antennaswith inhomogeneous media

The hybrid method of moments (MoM)/Green's function method technique is applied to infinite periodic printed antenna arrays containing dielectric inhomogeneities. The solution uses an integral equation for an infinite periodic printed array on or over a homogeneous dielectric substrate, coupled with equivalent volume polarization currents for dielectric inhomogeneities on top of the homogeneous substrate. Volume pulse-basis functions were used to expand the volume polarization currents. A hybrid MoM/Green's function method solution was then obtained through the matrix form of the problem. The two-dimensional (2-D) solution of plane wave scattering from a grounded dielectric slab was used to validate the reaction impedance of the dielectric inhomogeneity. Several infinite periodic printed dipole arrays with dielectric supports and overlays were studied with this solution and good agreement was observed between the hybrid MoM/Green's function method and waveguide simulator experiments     

Synthesis of near-field patterns of arrays

A new technique of synthesis of near-field (NF) amplitude and phase patterns of linear, planar, of volume arrays of finite size or arrays located on a planar contour of finite size is presented. The array could consist of point dipoles or directive elements. The criterion for prescribing the NF (amplitude and phase) pattern information in the synthesis problem for unique determination of array excitation currents is also stated. The proposed near-field synthesis technique is based on the potential integral solution of source currents, Nyquist sampling of the near-field data and the technique of linear least square approximation (LLSA). The NF pattern synthesis technique is illustrated to synthesize a variety of NF patterns with a number of array configurations. Application of the proposed NF pattern synthesis technique to minimize distortion in far-field patterns of arrays mounted on a conducting platform and to realize array antennas with low sidelobes in the near and far field is also presented.     

基于最小二乘法的平面波综合

将最小二乘法引入近场天线测量中,提出了一种新的平面波综合方法。以半波对称振子组成的矩形平面阵作为平面波综合的理论模型,用这一新方法寻求阵列单元的最佳幅相分布,以使所综合出的准平面波质量最好。计算结果表明在待测区域大小一定的条件下,利用本文方法可以实现较传统方法更小的探头阵列要求。良好的仿真结果证实了该方法在天线测量及散射测量应用中的有效性。     

A singular integral representation of the electromagnetic field: Physical regularization of the ill-posedness of the near-field zones of antennas

A classification of ill-posedness in the antenna theory is presented in the case when the basic principles of electromagnetics are not fulfilled, which is observed in the near-field radiation zones. The Tikhonov regularization of Fredholm integral equations of the first kind is compared with the physical regularization (a self-consistent method). The ill-posedness arising in the analysis of the electromagnetic field (EMF) of an electric dipole, an equidistant array on its basis, frame antennas, and a cylindrical helical antenna is considered. In particular, for the EMF of an electric dipole, the gap between the field and surface current density is removed and the limits of applicability of the method of induced electromotive forces of coupled dipoles are established. It is shown that unidirectional radiation in the azimuthal plane is typical of a ring frame antenna with a certain dimension of the ring. For a cylindrical helical antenna, the calculation of the surface current density is reduced to a hypersingular integral equation with a quadratic Cauchy singularity. The analysis of the behavior of the current flowing along the helix made it possible to explain the peculiarities of the antenna pattern for various helical turns.     

Evaluation of adaptive phased array antenna, far-field nullingperformance in the near-field region

A theory for analyzing the behavior of adaptive phased array antennas illuminated by a near-field interference test source is presented. Conventional phased array near-field focusing is used to produce an equivalent far-field antenna pattern at a range distance of one to two aperture diameters from the adaptive antenna under test. The antenna is assumed to be a linear array of isotropic receive elements. The interferer is assumed to be a bandlimited noise source radiating from an isotropic antenna. The theory is developed for both partially and fully adaptive arrays. Results are presented for the fully adaptive array case with single and multiple interferers. The results indicate that near-field and far-field adaptive nulling can be equivalent. The adaptive nulling characteristics studied in detail are the array radiation patterns, adaptive cancellation, covariance matrix eigenvalues, and adaptive array weights     

Analysis of finite phased arrays of circular microstrip patches

A method is presented for analyzing a finite planar array of circular microstrip patches fed by coaxial probes. The self- and mutual impedances between array elements are calculated using the method of moments with the dyadic Green's function for a dielectric layer on a ground plane. The patch circuits are determined by using the reaction integral equation. The active input impedance as well as the active element pattern of the array are computed from a knowledge of the resultant patch currents. The calculated results for two-element and eight-element linear arrays are in good agreement with experimental data. The active reflection coefficient and element pattern for the center and edge elements of a two-dimensional array as a function of scan angle are also presented     

Analysis of the time-reversal operator for a small spherical scatterer in an electromagnetic field

The time-reversal operator (TRO) for a planar array of crossed dipole elements illuminating a small conducting and/or dielectric sphere is investigated in order to determine the general properties of an electromagnetic time-reversing array system. The behavior of such a system for a given frequency is analyzed by studying the eigenvalues and eigenvectors of the TRO. Each eigenvector specifies a set of complex driving currents for the array elements that produce received voltages that are proportional to the conjugates of the drive currents. The proportionality constant is equal to the square root of the associated eigenvalue and is the same for all elements. The eigenvalues and eigenvectors can be determined by performing a singular value decomposition (SVD) on the multistatic data matrix of the array. The eigenvalues of the TRO are the squares of the singular values, and the eigenvectors are identical to the singular vectors. We have shown that the maximum number of singular vectors associated with the sphere is equal to the number of orthogonal orientations of the dipole moments induced in the sphere when irradiated by the array, so there is a maximum of six for a conducting sphere but only three are significant when the conductivity is small and the sphere may be considered being just a dielectric. Numerical results are presented for linear and circular arrays to show the general behavior of the system.     

双圆柱体结构天线阵列输入阻抗计算和阻抗匹配

该文介绍了一种由双圆柱体单元组成的全向天线输入阻抗的计算方法。文中将全向天线分解为馈电子系统和辐射子系统,同时将辐射子系统等效成一个N端口网络。首先根据传输线上电压、电流的传播关系,推导出网络的端口电压,端口电流和端口阻抗,然后由传输线上阻抗变换关系推导出天线的输入阻抗。从而可见,为实现该天线的阻抗匹配只须调节天线两端的短路活塞位置。同时,实测值验证了天线样品反射系数的计算结果。     

Efficient electromagnetic analysis of a doubly infinite array ofrectangular apertures

An accurate and rapid method is presented for solving the magnetic field integral equation for the equivalent magnetic currents representing a doubly periodic array of rectangular apertures. Ewald's method is used to accelerate the summations associated with periodic Green's function, allowing the Green's function to be determined to nearly machine precision. Galerkin's method is used to discretize the integral equation with Chebyshev polynomials used as the basis and testing functions. Efficient treatment of the “self-term” singularity is emphasized