volume | PIER Journals

Abstract

In a large number of applications, including communications from satellites, an optimal exploitation of the available power is of the outmost importance. As a consequence, isophoric array architectures, i.e., arrays using the same power in all the different entry points and achieving the amplifiers' maximum efficiency, are of great interest. At the same time, the easy reconfigurability of the power patterns results fundamental in order to get a full exploitation of the payload. In this paper, an innovative and deterministic approach is proposed for the optimal synthesis of linear phase-only reconfigurable isophoric sparse arrays able to commute their pattern amongst an arbitrary number of radiation modalities. The introduced perspective leads to an effective solution procedure for the fast design of antennas with high performance, and does not recur to computationally expensive global-optimization techniques. Numerical results concerning applications of actual interest and employing realistic element patterns are provided in support of the given theory.

1. Mailloux, R. J., Phased Array Antenna Handbook, 2nd Ed., Artech House, 2005.

2. Oliveri, G. and L. Poli, "Synthesis of monopulse sub-arrayed linear and planar array antennas with optimized sidelobes," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 99, 109-129, 2009.
doi:10.2528/PIER09092510

3. Mahanti, G. K., A. Chakraborty, and S. Das, "Phase-only and amplitude-phase only synthesis of dual-beam pattern linear antenna arrays using floating-point genetic algorithms," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 68, 247-259, 2007.
doi:10.2528/PIER06072301

4. Ares-Pena, F. J., G. Franceschetti, and J. A. Rodriguez, "A simple alternative for beam reconfiguration of array antennas," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 88, 227-240, 2008.
doi:10.2528/PIER08110303

5. ESA/ESTEC, Tender AO/1-5598/08/NL/ST, Innovative Architectures for Reducing the Number of Controls of Multiple Beam Telecommunications Antennas, 2008.

6. Morabito, A. F., T. Isernia, M. G. Labate, M. D'Urso, and O. M. Bucci, "Direct radiating arrays for satellite communications via aperiodic tilings," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 93, 107-124, 2009.
doi:10.2528/PIER09040908

7. Bucci, O. M., T. Isernia, A. F. Morabito, S. Perna, and D. Pinchera, "On the optimal synthesis of shaped beam sparse arrays having uniform amplitude excitations," Proc. of IEEE International Symposium on Phased Array Systems & Technology, 757-762, 2010.
doi:10.1109/ARRAY.2010.5613277

8. Bucci, O. M., T. Isernia, and A. F. Morabito, "A deterministic approach to the synthesis of pencil beams through planar thinned arrays," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 101, 217-230, 2010.
doi:10.2528/PIER10010104

9. Isernia, T., A. Massa, A. F. Morabito, and P. Rocca, "On the optimal synthesis of phase-only reconfigurable array antennas," Proc. of the Fifth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (with honorable mention), 2074-2077, 2011.

10. Doyle, W., "On approximating linear array factors," RAND Corp Mem RM-3530-PR, February 1963.

11. Skolnik, M. I., "Ch. nonuniform arrays," Antenna Theory, R. E. Collin and F. Zucker (eds.), McGraw-Hill, New York, 1969.

12. Zhang, S., S.-X. Gong, Y. Guan, P.-F. Zhang, and Q. Gong, "A novel IGA-EDSPSO hybrid algorithm for the synthesis of sparse arrays," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 89, 121-134, 2009.
doi:10.2528/PIER08120806

13. Kurup, D. G., M. Himdi, and A. Rydberg, "Synthesis of uniform amplitude unequally spaced antenna arrays using the differential evolution algorithm," IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 51, 2210-2217, 2003.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2003.816361

14. Liu, D., Q. Feng, W.-B.Wang, and X. Yu, "Synthesis of unequally spaced antenna arrays by using inheritance learning particle swarm optimization," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 118, 205-221, 2011.
doi:10.2528/PIER11050502

15. Jin, N. and Y. Rahmat-Samii, "Advances in particle swarm optimization for antenna design: Real-number, binary, single-objective and multiobjective implementation," IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 55, No. 3, 557-567, 2007.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2007.891552

16. Bucci, O. M., M. D'Urso, T. Isernia, P. Angeletti, and G. Toso, "Deterministic synthesis of uniform amplitude sparse arrays via new density taper techniques," IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 58, No. 6, 1949-1958, 2010.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2010.2046831

17. Toso, G. and P. Angeletti, "Sparse and thinned array tracing," European Patent Application, No. 08290154.7, filed 18.02.2008, published 19.08.2009, EP number 2090995.

18. Isernia, T., O. M. Bucci, and N. Fiorentino, "Shaped beam antenna synthesis problem: Feasibility criteria and new strategies," Journal of Electromagnetic Waves and Applications, Vol. 12, No. 1, 103-138, 1998.
doi:10.1163/156939398X00098

19. Liu, Y., Z.-P. Nie, and Q. H. Liu, "A new method for the synthesis of non-uniform linear arrays with shaped power patterns," Progress In Electromagnetics Research, Vol. 107, 349-363, 2010.
doi:10.2528/PIER10060912

20. Bucci, O. M., L. Caccavale, and T. Isernia, "Optimal far-field focusing of uniformly spaced arrays subject to arbitrary upper bounds in nontarget directions," IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 50, 1539-1554, 2002.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2002.803959

21. Bucci, O. M., T. Isernia, and A. F. Morabito, "Optimal synthesis of directivity constrained pencil beams by means of circularly symmetric aperture fields," IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, Vol. 8, 1386-1389, 2009.
doi:10.1109/LAWP.2009.2039189

22. Morabito, A. F., A. R. Laganà, and T. Isernia, "On the optimal synthesis of ring symmetric shaped patterns by means of uniformly spaced planar arrays," Progress In Electromagnetics Research B, Vol. 20, 33-48, 2010.
doi:10.2528/PIERB10011206

23. Bucci, O. M., T. Isernia, and A. F. Morabito, "Optimal synthesis of circularly symmetric aperture sources with shaped patterns," Proc. of the Fifth European Conference on Antennas and Propagation, 1287-1290, 2011.

24. Rocca, P., M. Benedetti, M. Donelli, D. Franceschini, and A. Massa, "Evolutionary optimization as applied to inverse scattering problems," Inverse Problems, Vol. 25, No. 123003, 1-41, 2009.

Prof. Andrea Francesco Morabito

Prof. Tommaso Isernia

Dr. Loreto Di Donato