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This paper will investigate practical aspects of measuring antennas operating with pulsed RF signals of very narrow width, down to 100 ns. Modern network analyzers provide very high IF bandwidth, theoretically allowing measurement of very narrow pulses. But in practice there are several factors that limit the minimum pulse width that can be measured accurately. These include lowpass filtering in the IF path, limited receiver dynamic range, and trigger synchronization issues. On large near-field scanners, the RF path length change with probe motion becomes significant when the pulses are short. If the RF system uses a pulsed reference signal, a delay line may be required to align the test and reference pulses arriving at the receiver. Even with a CW reference, the varying propagation delay in the test channel places a limit on the minimum pulse width. The paper will present a detailed investigation of these issues along with measurement examples. It will compare measured performance of a standalone VNA, a VNA with remote mixers, and the NSI Panther receiver.
The 3D reconstruction algorithm of DIATOOL, with its higher-order Method of Moments-based implementation, reconstructs extreme near fields and surface currents on arbitrary 3D surfaces enclosing the antenna under test (AUT) from its measured radiated field. This is a valuable analysis and diagnostics tool for the antenna engineer to speed up the antenna prototyping cycle and identify errors in the manufactured AUTs, since the 3D reconstruction can solve a number of problems which traditional microwave holography cannot handle, namely: Accurate and detailed identification of array malfunctioning due to the enhanced spatial resolution of the reconstructed fields and currents Filtering of the scattering from support structures and feed network leakage A number of papers published over the past four years have shown these features in detail. At the same time it was observed that the spherical wave expansion (SWE) of the field radiated by the currents reconstructed by DIATOOL always provides a SWE power spectrum that looks noise-free. This phenomenon was observed for all the antennas on which the 3D reconstruction was applied, and it was explained as being an effect of the 3D reconstruction algorithm, which uses the a-priori information that all sources are contained inside the reconstruction surface. However, since real measured data were always used as input, it was not possible to prove that the SWE power spectrum of the reconstructed currents coincided with the one that would be obtained from noise-free measurements. The purpose of the present paper is thus to investigate in detail the noise filtering capabilities of the 3D reconstruction algorithm of DIATOOL. Models of several antennas, differing in size and type, were set up in GRASP with noise at different levels added to the radiated field. The noisy field was then given as input to DIATOOL and the SWE coefficients and the power spectra of the reconstructed currents were compared with the noise-free results coming from GRASP. Moreover, the effect of the varying noise level on the obtainable resolution was investigated.
Near field Radar Cross Section (RCS) measurements and Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) are used in this study to obtain geometrically correct images and far field RCS. The methods and the developed algorithms required for the imaging and the RCS extraction are described and evaluated in terms of performance in this paper. Most of the RCS measurements on full scale objects that are performed at our measurement ranges are set up at distances shorter than those given by the far field criterion. The reasons for this are e.g., constraints in terms of budget, available equipment and ranges but also technical considerations such as maximizing the signal to noise in the measurements. The calibrated near-field data can often be used as recorded for diagnostic measurements. However, in many cases the far field RCS is also required. Data processing is then needed to transform the near field data to far field RCS in those cases. A straightforward way to image the RCS data recorded in the near field is to use the backprojection algorithm. The amplitudes and locations for the scatterers are then determined in a pixel by pixel imaging process. The most complicated part of the processing is due to the near field geometry of the measurement. This is the correction that is required to give the correct incidence angles in all parts of the imaged area. This correction has to be applied on a pixel by pixel basis taking care to weigh the samples correctly. The images obtained show the geometrically correct locations of the target scatterers with exceptions for some target features e.g., when there is multiple or resonance scattering. Separate features in the images can be gated and an inverse processing step can be performed to obtain the far field RCS of the full target or selected parts of the target, as a function of angle and frequency. Examples of images and far field RCS extracted from measurements on full scale targets using the ISAR processing techniques described in this paper will be given.
Near field Radar Cross Section (RCS) measurements and Inverse Synthetic Aperture Radar (ISAR) are used in this study to obtain geometrically correct images and far field RCS. The methods and the developed algorithms required for the imaging and the RCS extraction are described and evaluated in terms of performance in this paper. Most of the RCS measurements on full scale objects that are performed at our measurement ranges are set up at distances shorter than those given by the far field criterion. The reasons for this are e.g., constraints in terms of budget, available equipment and ranges but also technical considerations such as maximizing the signal to noise in the measurements. The calibrated near-field data can often be used as recorded for diagnostic measurements. However, in many cases the far field RCS is also required. Data processing is then needed to transform the near field data to far field RCS in those cases. A straightforward way to image the RCS data recorded in the near field is to use the backprojection algorithm. The amplitudes and locations for the scatterers are then determined in a pixel by pixel imaging process. The most complicated part of the processing is due to the near field geometry of the measurement. This is the correction that is required to give the correct incidence angles in all parts of the imaged area. This correction has to be applied on a pixel by pixel basis taking care to weigh the samples correctly. The images obtained show the geometrically correct locations of the target scatterers with exceptions for some target features e.g., when there is multiple or resonance scattering. Separate features in the images can be gated and an inverse processing step can be performed to obtain the far field RCS of the full target or selected parts of the target, as a function of angle and frequency. Examples of images and far field RCS extracted from measurements on full scale targets using the ISAR processing techniques described in this paper will be given.
Equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP) and Saturating flux density (SFD) are two system level parameters often sought during characterizing of spacecraft systems. The EIRP quantity is the power that an isotropic radiator will have to transmit to lead to the same power density that the AUT will effect at a specific angle of interest. A convenient measurement technique is to set up a standard gain antenna as receiver in the far-field of an AUT and to then determine EIRP by measuring the power at the port of the standard gain receiving antenna. Since the distance is known the EIRP can be calculated. SFD is the flux required to saturate the receiver of the antenna under test and is also usually determined on a far-field range. The philosophy of this measurement is to determine the saturation level of the receiver and this is typically achieved by gradually increasing the input power level of the transmitter. This process continues as long as the receiver response linearly tracks the increase in power of the transmitter and is terminated once the receiver is saturated. Thus, SFD can be interpreted as being the receive system parameter analogy of the transmit system parameter EIRP. There is a common misconception that these parameters cannot be measured on a near-field range and that they require far-field (or far-field equivalent, i.e. compact range) conditions for a valid measurement to be made. However, the principles for measuring both of these parameters in a planar near-field range (PNF) were presented in [1]: An EIRP technique is presented in [1] equation 32 and this approach relies on a complex integration of the measured near-field power, the near-field probe gain and a single power measurement at a reference location. A SFD technique is presented in [1] equation 39. This technique also relies on a complex integration of the measured near-field power, the near-field probe gain and a single transmitting probe power measurement at a reference location. Although these descriptions are theoretically concise their execution is not obvious [2] and as a result, there still seems to be hesitation in making (and trusting) these measurements in industry. This paper intends to provide further insight into measuring these two parameters in a PNF range and offers test procedures outlining the steps involved in doing so. The principle goal is to offer further explanation to illuminate the underlying principles. The work presented here is not new, but is presented as a tutorial on this illusive subject. [1] Newell, Ward and McFarlane, “Gain and Power Parameter Measurements Using Planar Near-Field Techniques”, IEE APS Transactions, Vol 36, No. 6, June 1988. [2] Masters & Young, “Automated EIRP measurements on a near-field range”, Antenna Measurement Techniques Association Conference, September 30 - October 3, 1996.
Antenna alignment for near-field scanning was typically done at NIST with multiple instruments (theodolites, electronic levels, motor encoders) to align multiple stacked motion stages (linear, rotation). Many labs and systems are now using laser trackers to measure ranges and perform periodic compensation across the scan geometry. We are now seeing the use of laser trackers with 3D coordinate metrology to align ranges and take positional data. We present the alignment techniques and positional accuracy and uncertainty results of a mmWave antenna scanning system at 183 GHz. We are using six degree-of-freedom (6DOF) AUT and Probe measurements (x, y, z, yaw, pitch, roll) to align the AUT and then to align the scan geometry to the AUT. We are using a combination of 3DOF laser tracker measurements with a combined 6DOF laser tracker/photogrammetry sensor. We combine these measurements using coordinated spatial metrology to assess the quality of each motion stage in the system, tie the measurements of each individual alignment together, and to assess scan geometry errors for position and pointing. Finally we take in-situ 6DOF position measurements to assess the positional accuracy to allow for positional error correction in the final pattern analysis. The knowledge of the position and errors allow for the correction of position and alignment of the probe at every point in the scan geometry to within the repeatability of the motion components (~30 µm). The in-situ position knowledge will eventually allow us to correct to the uncertainty of the measurement (~15 µm). Our final results show positioning errors on the spherical scan surface have an average error of ~30 µm with peak excursions of ~100 µm. This robust positioning allows for accurate analysis of the RF system stability. Our results show that at 183 GHz, our RF repeatability with movement over 180° orientation change with a 600 mm offset to be less than ±0.05 dB and ±5°.
Performance requirements for compact ranges are typically specified as metrics describing the quiet zone's electromagnetic-field quality. The typical metrics are amplitude taper and ripple, phase variation, and cross polarization. Acceptance testing of compact ranges involves phase probing of the quiet zone to confirm that these metrics are within their specified limits. It is expected that if the metrics are met, then measurements of an antenna placed within that quiet zone will have acceptably low uncertainty. However, a literature search on the relationship of these parameters to resultant errors in antenna measurement yields limited published documentation on the subject. Various methods for determining the uncertainty in antenna measurements have been previously developed and presented for far-field and near-field antenna measurements. An uncertainty analysis for a compact range would include, as one of its terms, the quality of the field illuminating on the antenna of interest. In a compact range, the illumination is non-ideal in amplitude, phase and polarization. Error sources such as reflector surface inaccuracies, chamber-induced stray signals, reflector and edge treatment geometry, and instrumentation RF leakage, perturb the illumination from ideal.
When performing far field or near field antenna measurements on large antennas, it is often necessary to have various types of mechanical positioning systems to achieve the required hemispheric scans. Measurement systems employing a single-arm gantry, a dual-arm gantry, a fixed arch moving probe, or a fixed arch multi-probe have been paired with either an azimuth positioner or a vehicle turntable to provide hemispheric scanning of the object being tested. This paper will highlight the key characteristics of various scanning methods making comparisons between the different techniques. Positioning and system accuracy, speed, stowing ability, calibration, frequency range, upgradability, relative cost and other key aspects of the various techniques will be discussed in detail to help the end user during the system design and selection process. In addition, the paper will highlight novel hemispheric and truncated spherical scanning approaches. In many applications, the success of the entire project often centers on the judicious selection of the positioning subsystem. This paper will provide guidance toward making the proper selection of the scanning concept as well as of the positioning system.
A three-step equiangular (120º) phase shifting holography (EPSH) technique is proposed for THz antenna near-field/far-field prediction. The method is attractive from the viewpoint of receiver sensitivity, phase accuracy over the entire complex plane, simplified detector array architecture, as well as reducing planarity requirements of the near-field scanner. Numerical modeling is presented for the holographic receiver performance, using expected phase shift calibrations errors and phase shift noise. The receiver model incorporates responsivity and thermal noise specifications of a commercial Schottky diode detector. Additionally, simulated near-field patterns at 372GHz demonstrate the convenience of the method for accurate and high dynamic range THz near-field/far-field predictions, using a phase-shifter calibrated to ±0.1°.
We propose a technique which achieves highly accurate near-field data as well as far-field patterns despite the positioning inaccuracy of the scanner in the antenna near-field measurements. The method involves position sensing hardware in conjunction with data processing software. The underlying theory is provided by the Field Mapping Algorithm (FMA), which transforms exactly the measured field data on a conventional planar, spherical, or cylindrical surface, indeed on any enclosing surface, to any other surface of interest. In our modified near-field scanning system, a position recording laser device is attached to the probe. The positions of data grid points are thus found and recorded along with the raw RF data. The raw data acquired over an irregular, imperfect surface is subsequently converted exactly to a designated, regular surface of canonical type based on the FMA and its associated position information. Once the near-field data is determined at all required grid points, the far-field pattern per se is obtained via a conventional near-field-to-far-field transformation. Moreover, and perhaps just as importantly, the interplay between our FMA and the free-form position/RF recording methodology just described allows us to bypass entirely the arduous task of strict antenna alignment. The free-form position/RF data are simply propagated by the FMA software to some perfectly aligned reference surface ideally adapted as a springboard for any intended far-field buildup. Our proposed marriage of a standard scanning system and a position recorder, with otherwise imperfect RF/location data restored to ideal status under the guidance of the FMA, clearly offers the advantage of high precision at minimal equipment cost. It is, simply stated, a win-win budget/accuracy RF measurement solution. Two analytic examples and one measurement case are given for demonstration. The first example is a circular aperture within an infinite conducting plane, the second is a 10 lambda x 10 lambda dipole array antenna. The measurement case involves a waveguide slot array antenna. In all three cases, the near-field data were deliberately acquired over imperfectly located grid points. The FMA was then applied to obtain near-field data at the preferred, regularly arranged grid points from these position compromised values. Excellent grid-to-grid near-field comparison and calculated far-field results were obtained.
The near-field – far-field (NF–FF) transformation with spherical scanning is particularly interesting, since it allows the reconstruction of the complete radiation pattern of the antenna under test (AUT) [1]. In this context, the application of the nonredundant sampling representations of the electromagnetic (EM) fields [2] has allowed the development of efficient spherical NF–FF transformations [3, 4], which usually require a number of NF data remarkably lower than the classical one [1]. In fact, the NF data needed by this last are accurately recovered by interpolating a minimum set of measurements via optimal sampling interpolation (OSI) expansions. A remarkable measurement time saving is so obtained. However, due to an imprecise control of the positioning systems and their finite resolution, it may be impossible to exactly locate the probe at the points fixed by the sampling representation, even though their position can be accurately read by optical devices. As a consequence, it is very important to develop an effective algorithm for an accurate and stable reconstruction of the NF data needed by the NF–FF transformation from the acquired irregularly spaced ones. A viable and convenient strategy [5] is to retrieve the uniform samples from the nonuniform ones and then reconstruct the required NF data via an accurate and stable OSI expansion. In this framework, two different approaches have been proposed. The former is based on an iterative technique, which converges only if there is a biunique correspondence associating at each uniform sampling point the nearest nonuniform one, and has been applied in [5] to the uniform samples reconstruction in the case of cylindrical and spherical surfaces. The latter relies on the singular value decomposition method, does not exhibit the above limitation, but can be conveniently applied only if the uniform samples recovery can be reduced to the solution of two independent one-dimensional problems [6]. Both the approaches have been applied and numerically compared with reference to the positioning errors compensation in the spherical NF–FF transformation for long antennas [7] using a prolate ellipsoidal AUT modelling. The goal of this work is just to validate experimentally the application of these approaches to the NF–FF transformation with spherical scanning for elongated antennas [4], using a cylinder ended in two half-spheres for modelling them. The experimental tests have been performed in the Antenna Characterization Lab of the University of Salerno, provided with a roll over azimuth spherical NF facility supplied by MI Technologies, and have fully assessed the effectiveness of both the approaches. [1] J.E. Hansen, ed., Spherical Near-Field Antenna Measurements , IEE Electromagnetic Waves Series, London, UK, Peter Peregrinus, 1998. [2] O.M. Bucci, C. Gennarelli, C. Savarese, “Representation of electromagnetic fields over arbitrary surfaces by a finite and nonredundant number of samples,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Prop. , vol. 46, pp. 351-359, 1998. [3] O.M. Bucci, F. D’Agostino, C. Gennarelli, G. Riccio, C. Savarese, “Data reduction in the NF–FF transformation technique with spherical scanning,” Jour. Electr. Waves Appl ., vol. 15, pp. 755-775, June 2001. [4] F. D’Agostino, F. Ferrara, C. Gennarelli, R. Guerriero, M. Migliozzi, “Effective antenna modellings for NFFF transformations with spherical scanning using the minimum number of data,” Int. Jour. Antennas Prop ., vol. 2011, Article ID 936781, 11 pages, 2011 [5] O.M. Bucci, C. Gennarelli, G. Riccio, C. Savarese, “Electromagnetic fields interpolation from nonuniform samples over spherical and cylindrical surfaces,” IEE Proc. Microw. Antennas Prop ., vol. 141, pp. 77-84, April 1994. [6] F. Ferrara, C. Gennarelli, G. Riccio, C. Savarese, “Far field reconstruction from nonuniform plane-polar data: a SVD based approach,” Electromagnetics, vol. 23, pp. 417-429, July 2003 [7] F. D’Agostino, F. Ferrara, C. Gennarelli, R. Guerriero, M. Migliozzi, “Two techniques for compensating the probe positioning errors in the spherical NF–FF transformation for elongated antennas,” The Open Electr. Electron. Eng. Jour. , vol. 5, pp. 29-36, 2011.
In recent times, planar near-field antenna measurements have largely been performed within fully absorber lined anechoic chambers. However this is a comparatively recent development as, due to the nature of the electromagnetic radiation when measuring medium to high gain antennas, one can often obtain excellent results when testing within only a partially absorber lined chamber [1], or in some cases even when using absorber placed principally behind the acquisition plane. As absorber can be bulky and costly, optimizing its usage often becomes a significant factor when planning a new facility. This situation becomes more pressing when the designated test environment is not exclusively devoted to antenna pattern testing with non-ideal absorber coverage being, in some cases, mandated, c.f. EMC testing. Planar test systems lend themselves to deployment within multipurpose installations as they are routinely constructed so as to be portable [2] thereby allowing partial or perhaps complete removal of the test system between measurement campaigns. This paper will present measured data taken using a number of different planar antenna test systems with and without anechoic chambers to summarize what is achievable and to provide design guidelines for testing within non-ideal anechoic environments. NSI’s Planar Mathematical Absorber Reflection Suppression (MARS) technique [3, 4] will be utilized to show additional improvements in performance that can be achieved through the use of modern sophisticated post processing. Keywords: Planar Near-Field, Reflection Suppression, Scattering, MARS. REFERENCES S.F. Gregson, A.C. Newell, G.E. Hindman, M.J. Carey, “Extension of The Mathematical Absorber Reflection Suppression Technique To The Planar Near-Field Geometry”, AMTA, Atlanta, October 2010. G.E. Hindman, “Applications of Portable Near-Field Antenna Measurement Systems”, AMTA, October, 1991. S.F. Gregson, A.C. Newell, G.E. Hindman, “Advances In Planar Mathematical Absorber Reflection Suppression”, AMTA, Denver, Colorado, October 2011. S.F. Gregson, A.C. Newell, G.E. Hindman, P. Pelland, “Range Multipath Reduction In Plane-Polar Near-Field Antenna Measurements”, AMTA, Seattle, October 2012.
In the recent years, many efforts have been spent to reduce the time required for the near-field data acquisition, since such a time is nowadays very much greater than that required to perform the transformation. In this context, planar spiral scanning techniques exploiting continuous and synchronized movements of the positioning systems of the probe and antenna under test (AUT) have been proposed [1-4] to significantly reduce the measurement time. They are based on the nonredundant sampling representations of electromagnetic fields [5, 6] and use optimal sampling interpolation formulas to efficiently recover the data required by the classical plane-rectangular near-field – farfield (NF–FF) transformation [7] from those acquired along the spiral. In particular, the AUT has been modelled as enclosed in a sphere in [1, 2], whereas an oblate ellipsoid has been considered in [3, 4]. When dealing with a quasi-planar AUT, this last antenna modelling results to be more effective from the truncation error and data reduction viewpoints with respect to the spherical one. As a matter of fact, it is able to reduce the redundancy induced by the spherical modelling for such a kind of antennas and allows to consider measurement planes at distances less than one half of the antenna maximum size, thus lowering the error related to the truncation of the scanning surface. The goal of this work is to experimentally validate the NF–FF transformation with planar spiral scanning which makes use of the ellipsoidal AUT modelling [3]. The experimental tests will be performed in the Antenna Characterization Lab of the University of Salerno, equipped with a planepolar NF facility system, besides the cylindrical and spherical ones, and will fully assess the effectiveness of this technique, as well as, of that based on the spherical modelling, that can be obtained as particular case from the oblate one when the ellipsoid eccentricity goes to zero. [1] O.M. Bucci, F. D’Agostino, C. Gennarelli, G. Riccio, and C. Savarese, “Probe compensated far-field reconstruction by near-field planar spiral scanning,” IEE Proc. – Microw., Antennas and Propagat. , vol. 149, pp. 119–123, 2002. [2] F. D’Agostino, C. Gennarelli, G. Riccio, and C. Savarese, “Theoretical foundations of near-field–far-field transformations with spiral scannings,” Prog. in Electromagn. Res. , vol. 61, pp. 193-214, 2006 [3] F. D’Agostino, F. Ferrara, C. Gennarelli, R. Guerriero, and M. Migliozzi, “An effective NF-FF transformation technique with planar spiral scanning tailored for quasi-planar antennas,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat ., vol. 56, pp. 2981-2987, 2008. [4] F. D’Agostino, F. Ferrara, C. Gennarelli, R. Guerriero, and M. Migliozzi, “The unified theory of near–field – far–field transformations with spiral scannings for nonspherical antennas,” Prog. in Electromagn. Res. B, vol. 14, pp. 449-477, 2009. [5] O.M. Bucci, C. Gennarelli, and C. Savarese, “Representation of electromagnetic fields over arbitrary surfaces by a finite and nonredundant number of samples,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Prop. , vol. 46, pp. 351- 359, 1998. [6] O.M. Bucci and C. Gennarelli, “Application of nonredundant sampling representations of electromagnetic fields to NF-FF transformation techniques,” Int. Jour. of Antennas and Propagat. , vol. 2012, ID 319856, 14 pages. [7] D. T. Paris, W. M. Leach, Jr., and E. B. Joy, “Basic theory of probe-compensated near-field measurements,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Propagat., vol. AP-26, pp. 373-379, May 1978.
The electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) problems are becoming more challenging and noticeable due to the increasing complexity of integrated circuits (IC). Currently, most electromagnetic interference (EMI) standards specify that the measurements must be performed in the far field which is time consuming and expensive for the use of semi-anechoic chambers or open area test site. While near-field measurement is usually fast and much more flexible, especially for the complex structures, the near-field results could be obtained more efficiently for built-in ICs. The transformation between near-field and far-field data is of great significance as long as the near-field data is measured. Many methods including near-field scanning method and Huygens’ equivalence method are used to complete the transformation from near-field data to far-field radiation. However, the near-field scanning method is inherent complex and requires strict mathematical derivation, which is difficult to handle for some practical cases. Huygens’ equivalence method is restricted by the location of observation point and the results are hardly obtained under scanning plane. In contrast, near-field to far-field transformation based on inverse method appears to be more desirable by reconstructing a dipole-moment model instead of an IC. The dipole-moment model can be used to predict the far-field data, but also can be incorporated into a numerical full-wave tool as an equivalent source for complex systems. In this paper, the inverse method is firstly introduced. A noise source model from an IC is proposed based on an array of dipoles. These dipole moments can be extracted from the near-field measurement in a scanning plane above the IC. Each dipole is modeled as an equivalent combined source consists of wire antennas and loop antennas. Then the radiation of IC in far-field region can be easily obtained. Finally, an example of physical IC is given to validate the approach.
Recent enhancements in military telecommunication systems for monitoring and tracking in low VHF range (30-80MHz) imply the use of specific antenna measurement facilities to characterize either the antenna alone or the antenna mounted on a supporting structure which can be heavy and bulky. The indoor Near-Field approach shows benefits in terms of compactness. However this approach involves issues due to high levels of reflectivity of the anechoic chamber, the antenna under test positioner and the measurement probe structure at these larges wavelengths. Studies and simulations of each contribution have been performed in a previous paper. The proposed paper focuses on the improvement of measurement results using post-processing techniques and associated uncertainty analysis of the mono-probe near-field system at the CNES. First the new 50-400 MHz dual polarized probe and the measurement system are briefly presented. Then the estimation of each error term is detailed providing a global error budget in order to appreciate the benefit of post-processing technique. All the considered errors terms are all of those included in the well-known 18 NIST terms. Each of them is evaluated using the most appropriated approaches (specific measurement, simulation).
Recent enhancements in military telecommunication systems for monitoring and tracking in low VHF range (30-80MHz) imply the use of specific antenna measurement facilities to characterize either the antenna alone or the antenna mounted on a supporting structure which can be heavy and bulky. The indoor Near-Field approach shows benefits in terms of compactness. However this approach involves issues due to high levels of reflectivity of the anechoic chamber, the antenna under test positioner and the measurement probe structure at these larges wavelengths. Studies and simulations of each contribution have been performed in a previous paper. The proposed paper focuses on the improvement of measurement results using post-processing techniques and associated uncertainty analysis of the mono-probe near-field system at the CNES. First the new 50-400 MHz dual polarized probe and the measurement system are briefly presented. Then the estimation of each error term is detailed providing a global error budget in order to appreciate the benefit of post-processing technique. All the considered errors terms are all of those included in the well-known 18 NIST terms. Each of them is evaluated using the most appropriated approaches (specific measurement, simulation).
A technique is presented for determining the pattern of an antenna in the focused near-field from cylindrical near-field measurements. Although the same objective could be achieved by conventional near-field to far-field transformation followed by a back projection, the proposed technique has an intuitive appeal and is considerably simpler and faster. The focused near-field antenna pattern is obtained by applying Huygens’ principle, as embodied in the field equivalent principle, directly to near-field measurements and by including an “obliquity factor” to suppress backlobe radiation. The technique was experimentally verified by comparison with far-field patterns obtained by conventional cylindrical near-field to far-field transformation and by EM simulations. Excellent agreement in sidelobe levels and beamwidth was achieved. The technique was applied to the 25 in diameter reflector antenna of a harmonic radar operating at 5.8 GHz and 11.6 GHz. Since the operating range of this radar is less than 40 ft, the reflector is the near-field at both frequencies. By defocusing the reflector at the harmonic frequency the beamwidths and gains at both frequencies can be made the same. The defocusing is accomplished by exploiting the frequency dependent phase center displacement of a log-periodic feed.
Experimental measurement plays a key role for technology maturation in an R&D environment. In this paper we highlight the versatility of a new compact range at the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Sensors Directorate. In its first year of operation, the OneRY Range supported a wide variety of projects ranging from electrically small antennas to 20’ structures, spanning frequencies of 400 MHz to 45 GHz, and involving applications covering land, airborne, and space-based platforms. Here we present measured results from three different antenna development efforts for the Air Force. The first effort involves a UHF meta-material inspired antenna developed for an airborne application. In addition to successfully demonstrating relatively low frequency capability for a compact range, this effort met the challenge to measure antenna patterns from a physically large target. Results from OneRY are compared to those collected from a tapered chamber. Next we show experimental measurement of digital beam forming (DBF) in a large conformal phased array antenna operating at L and S bands. The DBF experimental testing is part of a follow-on effort to an Advance Technology Demonstration conformal array supporting satellite tracking, telemetry and command (TT&C). Finally, we present results from a “quick look” investigation into the operability of a COTS antenna system matched to a third party radome. The project supports airborne satellite communications at K, Ka, and Q bands. Performance of a high frequency extension (18-50 GHz) to the compact range is examined to include an inter-range comparison to planar near-field measurements. A description of the OneRY Indoor Range is also provided.
Although highly accurate relative position data can be achieved using laser tracking systems which are suitable for millimeter wave antenna characterization, a considerable gap exists in the ability to absolutely align antennas to laser tracker target coordinate systems. In particular this scenario arises in millimeter wave near-field measurements where probe antenna aperture dimensions are on the order of a millimeter, and the position of its origin must be known to better than 1/20th of a wavelength, and orientation known to fractions of a degree. The fragile nature and dimensions of such antenna negate the use of coordinated metrology measurement systems and larger touch probes typically used for accurate spatial characterization. The Antenna Metrology Laboratory at NIST in Boulder, Colorado is developing a new machine vision based technique for measuring the absolute position of small (~1 mm) millimeter wave antenna apertures relative to a laser tracker target coordinate system. A synergy with existing laser tracking systems, this approach will provide a non-contact method for determining the absolute position and orientation coordinate frame of the probe antenna aperture in all six degrees of freedom to within 30-60 microns. This alignment system technique is demonstrated using the CROMMA Facility at NIST in Boulder, CO.
The development of the Configurable Robotic Millimeter-Wave Antenna facility (CROMMA) by the antenna metrology lab at the National Institute of Standards and Technology in Boulder Colorado has brought together several important aspects of 6-degree-of-freedom robotic motion, positioning and spatial metrology useful for high frequency antenna characterization. In particular, the ability to define a unified coordinated metrology space, which includes all the motion components of the system is at the heart of this facility. We present the details of integrating robotics that have well defined kinematic models, advanced spatial metrology techniques, and millimeter wave components which make up the CROMMA facility. From this, a high level of precision, accuracy, and traceability that is requisite for performing high frequency near-field antenna pattern measurements can be achieved. Emphasis is placed on the ability to precisely characterize and model the movement patterns of the robot positioners, and probe and test antenna apertures using state-of-the-art full 6-degree-of-freedom spatial metrology, while being able to manipulate this information in a unified measurement space. The advantages of using a unified coordinated metrology space as they pertain to complex antenna alignments, scan geometry, repeatability analysis, traceability, and uncertainty analysis will be discussed. In addition we will also discuss how the high level of positioning, and orientation knowledge obtainable with the CROMMA facility can enable the implementation of sophisticated near-field position correction algorithms and precisely configurable scan geometries.