Investigation of active phased arrays performance deficiency due to array planarity and misalignment. Issue 4 (4th March 2023)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kumar, Virendra; Verma, Rakesh Kumar; Shreeshail, ; Pandey, U. S.; Beenamole, K. S.; Gangwar, Ravi Kumar
• Is Part Of: Journal of electromagnetic waves and applications. Volume 37:Issue 4(2023)
• Page Start: 474
• Page End: 489
• Publication Date: 2023-03-04
• Subjects: Antenna array misalignment -- active phased array collimation -- laser tracker(LT) -- near-field test range (NFTR); Electromagnetic waves -- Periodicals; Electromagnetic devices -- Periodicals; 621.3
• DOI: 10.1080/09205071.2022.2147026
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0920-5071

Abstract

ABSTRACT: This paper investigates the degradation in the electromagnetic performance of an active phased array antenna and establishes the coupling relationship between the antenna array alignment/planarity to the near-field scanner probe. An analytical framework is presented to evaluate the sensitivity of radiation parameters of active phased arrays antenna due to the deviation of complex excitation vector. A laser-based positioning metrology equipment measures the near-field scanner plane to the antenna under test (AUT) plane in a global coordinate system. The antenna array surface is adjusted and aligned to the near-field scanner probe measurement plane within 1 mm (in S-band) by employing the mechanical mechanism within the positioning accuracies of 50–100 µ m . The collimation of a perfectly aligned antenna array results in the alignment of electrical and mechanical boresight of the active phased array radar. The theoretical evidence and experimental results presented powerful tools and guidelines to set a reasonable tolerance for array alignment in the near-field test range (NFTR) to achieve high performances of the active phased array antenna.