FURTHER EXPERIMENTAL STUDY OF PLASMA SHEATH EFFECTS ON ANTENNAS

Abstract

The plasma sheath simulation technique developed earlier was use to investigate the effects of various types of sheath discontinuities and inhomogenities on a slot antenna radiation pattern and input impedance. In the case of semi-infinite and finite-extent homogeneous plasma sheaths, the radiation pattern and the impedance characteristic are investigated with regard to the geometry of the discontinuity and its proximity to the slot antenna. It is found that the radiation pattern is unaffected by the discontinuity as long as the ratio of the distance between the source and the discontinuity to the sheath thickness is of the order of 20 or greater. When the sheath is made finite in extent, with a discontinuity on each side of the slot, the resulting pattern is seen to be a superposition of the effects of each discontinuity acting separately. The effects produced by inhomogeneities are found to be similar to those of a homogeneous sheath with a certain equivalent dielectric constant. For both the homogeneous and inhomogeneous sheaths, favorable comparison with the available theory is obtained.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jul 01, 1965
Accession Number
AD0621751

Entities

People

  • George Tyras
  • John M. Hamm

Organizations

  • University of Arizona

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Advanced Electronics

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Air Force
  • Antenna Radiation Patterns
  • Antennas
  • Contracts
  • Department Of Defense
  • Dielectric Permittivity
  • Discontinuities
  • Engineering
  • Geometry
  • Impedance
  • Plasma Sheaths
  • Radiation
  • Radiation Patterns
  • Simulations
  • Slot Antennas
  • Thickness
  • United States

Fields of Study

  • Physics

Readers

  • Phased Array Antenna Design.
  • Plasma Physics / Magnetohydrodynamics