23 May 2004

Exercise 2.1
You are asked to design an antenna for an infrared radar (wavelength about 20 microns
[micrometers]) with a gain of 106 (60 dB). Assume the antenna efficiency  = 100%.
What are the dimensions of the aperture? What size would it be in the microwave region,
say at S-band (fc = 3000 MHz)?

Note: All the variables for the infrared (IR) part of the problem will use an "_IR"
designator, and all variables for the microwave (radio frequency or RF) part of the problem
will use an "_RF" designator.

6 6 6 8 m
_IR  20  10 m G  10 f_RF  3000  10  Hz c  3  10
sec

We start with the equation that related antenna gain with aperture size and wavelength,
Equation 1-10. We solve this equation for the effective area, Ae (m2), and solve, as shown
below:

4    Ae
G
2

2
G  _IR 5 2
Ae_IR  Ae_IR  3.1831  10 m
4 

Because the antenna is 100% efficient, its physical area and effective area are the same. The
aperture shape is a square we can compute the length of its side, a (m).

a_IR  Ae_IR 3
a_IR  5.6419  10 m

a_IR  5.6419 mm

We compute the aperture size in the microwave region using the same approach. We only
need to compute the wavelength, RF (m). The whole process is shown below:

c
_RF 
f_RF _RF  0.1 m
2
G  _RF 2
Ae_RF  Ae_RF  795.7747 m
4 

a_RF  Ae_RF
a_RF  28.2095 m

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Exercise 2-2
A reflector antenna has an area of 100 m2. How many maximum gain elements would there
be in a fully-filled UHF ( ~ 1 meter) array of equivalent capability? What would be its
area?
2
Arefl  100  m   1 m

The relationship between antenna area, wavelength, and gain for reflector (conventional)
antenna is given by Equation 2-1. For array antennas the gain relationship is given by
Equation 2-30. We will start by computing the gain for the reflector antenna, Grefl (no
units), and then solving for the number of elements, N, necessary to achieve the same gain
for an array antenna. Because we are using "maximum gain elements" we use Equation 2-
23.
4    Arefl 3
Grefl  Grefl  1.2566  10
2


Garray N  Garray Grefl

Grefl
N  N  400 elements


The area of the array, Aarray (m2), is determined by equating the two equations above which
related the number of elements to antenna gain, area, and wavelength and solving for area, as
shown below:

4  A
Garray G refl N 
2

2
 N 2
Aarray  Aarray  100 m
4

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Exercise 2-4
Calculate the mainbeam gain and the azimuth and elevation beamwidths for a radar antenna
with the following characteristics: Uniform illumination function, 5 meters wide, 2 meters
high, antenna efficiency  = 0.5, and a frequency fc = 3 GHz.

9
Width  5m Height  2m   0.5 fc  3  10  Hz

8 m
c  3  10 
sec

The mainbeam antenna gain is given by Equation 2-2. The physical area of the antenna
product of its width and height.

4    A c
G     0.1 m
2 fc


4    Width  Height 3
G  G  6.2832  10
2


G_dB  10 log ( G) G_dB  37.9818

The beamwidth for an antenna with a Uniform illumination function is given by Equation 2-
14. The azimuth beamwidth, 3dB_az (degrees), is found using this equation and the width
of the antenna. The elevation beamwidth, 3dB_el (degrees), is found using this equation
and the height of the antenna.

51  
 3dB
D

51  
 3dB_az   3dB_az  1.02
Width

51  
 3dB_el   3dB_el  2.55
Height

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Exercise 2-5
Calculate the normalized gain of an antenna at an angle of 5 degrees for an antenna with a
Uniform current distribution, length D = 3 meters, and a frequency fc = 5 GHz. If the
mainbeam gain G = 35 dB, what is the gain of the antenna at an angle of 5 degrees?

9 8 m
 5 D  3m fc  5  10  Hz c  3  10
sec

The equation for normalized antenna gain as a function of angle is given by Equation 2-9.
Note: be careful with radians and degrees in this equation.

c
    0.06 m
fc
2
     
   D  sin    180  
 sin    
     3
G   G  4.3394  10
   
   D  sin     
 180 
 
  

G_dB  10 log  G  G_dB  23.6257

The gain of the antenna at an angle of 5 degrees is given below:

G_dB  35  G_dB G_dB  11.3743

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Exercise 2-6
A phase steered array has the following characteristics: frequency fc = 6 GHz, element
spacing d = /2, and phase shift between elements  = 15°. What angle is the beam steered
to?
9 m
fc  6  10 Hz   15 8
c  3  10
sec

The beam pointing angle as a function of array characteristics and phase shift between
elements is given by Equation 2-27. Note: be careful with the radians and degrees for the
phase shift and the beam pointing angle.

    
2  d     180    


 
 sin  0 0 asin 
  
 2  d 
c
 
fc   0.05 m


d  d  0.025 m
2
    
    180     180
 0  asin 
  
 0  4.7802 degrees
 2  d  

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Exercise 2-7
A frequency scan array has a transmit frequency fc = 2 GHz, a frequency excursion f =
100 MHz, element spacing d = /2, and electrical distance between elements L = 5. What
is the beam steering limit? What is the wrap-up factor, L/d, needed to provide a beam
steering limit 1 = ±60°?

9 6 8 m
f0  2  10 Hz f  100  10 Hz  s  60 c  3  10
sec

The beam steering limit, 1 (degrees) is given by Equation 2-27. Solve this equation for the
beam steering limit, while being careful with radians and degrees. We need the element
spacing, d (m), and electrical distance between elements, L (m). We were given
relationships for these characteristics relative to a wavelength,  (m). Compute the
wavelength, and then d and L.

L f
sin  1  
2d f0
 
c
f0
  0.15 m


d  d  0.075 m L  5 L  0.75 m
2

 L f  180
 1  asin     1  14.4775 degrees
 2d f0  

We can solve Equation 2-27 for the wrap-up factor, Wrap_up_factor (no units), to achieve
the required scan limits, s (degrees). Be careful with radians and degrees.

f0   
Wrap_up_factor  2   sin   s   Wrap_up_factor  34.641
f  180 

Note: It is not obvious that / is the same as f/fc (fc is not the same as f0). We can
 f  f f
assume = relative bandwidth. We can show that  . We
 0 fc  0 fc f0
start with Equation 2-26.

L  f0 
sin  0  1 
d  f 


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Solving for f0 as a function of the frequency that scans to the upper limit of , fu (Hz), and
as a function of the frequency that scans to the lower limit of , fl (Hz), gives the following
equations.

fu   1  sin  1 
  fl   1  sin  1 
 
d d
f0 f0
 L   L 

Subtracting the second equation from the first gives us:

 fu  fl  L  sin  1

d
 fu  fl

Since fu - fl = f and (fu + fl)/2 = fc, we have the following equation: This is Equation 2-
27.

2  
f d 
fc
 sin  1
L
  0

 f f0 f0
If we use the wavelength equation,  = c/f, we can find  
0 f0 fu fl

 f
Which indicates that approximately equals
0 f0

This approximation is correct when f0 fu  fl

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Exercise 2-8
An array antenna using 3-bit phase shifters and has a beamwidth 3dB = 2°. How precisely
can the beam be steered?

B3  3dB  2

The precision to which the beam can be steered is given by Equation 2.28.

 1
 0     0  0.1963
4 2 B 3dB

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Exercise 2-9
Calculate the beamwidth of an electronically scanned array with a beamwidth 3dB = 2.5°
when pointed a 0°, when it is scanned to 25°, 30°, and 45°.

 3dB  2.5 degrees

Use Equation 2.35 to compute the beamwidth as a function of scan angle. Be careful with
the degrees and radians.

 3dB
 3dB_25   3dB_25  2.7584 degrees
  
cos  25  
 180 

 3dB
 3dB_30   3dB_30  2.8868 degrees
  
cos  30  
 180 

 3dB
 3dB_45   3dB_45  3.5355 degrees
  
cos  45  
 180 

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Exercise 2-10
Calculate the mainbeam antenna gain for an electronically scanned array with the following
characteristics: number of elements N = 1000 and element gain g = 1.5 dB, when it is
scanned to 25°, 30°, and 45°.

N  1000 g_dB  1.5

First we need to convert from decibels to absolute, and then compute the mainbeam antenna
gain for reference using Equation 2-30.

( 0.1g_dB)
g  10 g  1.4125

3
N  g  1.4125  10 10 log ( N  g)  31.5

The mainbeam antenna gain as a function of scan angle is given by Equation 2-34. Note: be
careful with degrees and radians.

   3
N  g  cos  25    1.2802  10
 180 

   
10 log  N  g  cos  25     31.0728
  180  

   3
N  g  cos  30    1.2233  10
 180 

   
10 log  N  g  cos  30     30.8753
  180  

  
N  g  cos  45    998.8149
 180 

   
10 log  N  g  cos  45     29.9949
  180  

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