An Algorithm to Calculate Phase-Center Offset of Aperture Antennas when Measuring 2-Dimensional Radiation Patterns
Abstract
Centering the phase center of an antenna onto the rotational axis used to measure its radiation pattern is an iterative and time- consuming process. To facilitate this, a MATLAB algorithm has been developed to calculate the phase-center offset from the axis of rotation of a 2-dimensional antenna pattern. The hybrid algorithm comprises a combination of the 2-point method to calculate the offset along the antenna s main beam and an antisymmetry method is used to calculate offset perpendicular to the main-beam direction. The MATLAB algorithm is tested on the E-plane radiation pattern of a cylindrical horn antenna calculated using the high-frequency structural simulator s electromagnetic simulation engine, radiating at 5 GHz. The algorithm calculates the phase-center offset to within 15%. Because the algorithm analyzes the unwrapped phase of the radiation pattern, which it converts to offset distance, no ambiguity due to offsets greater than a wavelength exists. Using this algorithm, the phase center of the antenna can be placed coincident to the axis of rotation after the first antenna pattern is measured and analyzed.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 2015
- Accession Number
- ADA614347
Entities
People
- Berenice Verdin
- Patrick Debroux
- Samuel Pichardo
Organizations
- United States Army Research Laboratory