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3 by 3 phased array controlled by only three phase shifters

Conference Paper · December 2006

DOI: 10.1109/EUCAP.2006.4584953 · Source: IEEE Xplore

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Diego Betancourt Carlos Del Río

Cetena Fundation Universidad Pública de Navarra
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 3 BY 3 PHASED ARRAY CONTROLLED BY ONLY THREE PHASE SHIFTERS
Diego Betancourt, Carlos del Rio

Public University of Navarra, Campus Arrosadia s/n, Pamplona, Spain, Email: carlos@unavarra.es

ABSTRACT 2. BFN WITH CORPS

In this paper we introduce a new methodology to design The recently proposed CORPS are applied in this
Beam-Forming Networks - BFN for Phased Arrays opportunity to BFN for feeding antenna arrays. The
systems, in which, to scan the beam, is not longer system proposed can reduce by a factor of three, the
necessary to use a phase shifter for each radiating phase shifters necessary to make a hemispherical
element conforming the array. The new methodology is scanning of the main beam.
based in the Coherently Periodic Radiating Structures The BFN designed based on CORPS principles, fig. 1,
(CORPS) Principles. With the use of this concepts, we will has in this application two input ports and three
can reduce the electronic necessary to scan the beam, ouputs. Because of being inspired in the CORPS
e.g., a 3 by 3 Antenna array can be scanned using only 3 structures, the BFN should have these three main
phase shifters instead 9. By the same way, bigger characteristics: a) the network should be a periodic
systems can also be controlled. structure; b) the network horizontal periodicity should
be defined to have a horizontal filter that prohibits the
1. INTRODUCTION energy propagation in this plane; c) all the possible path
lengths should be essentially equal, allowing the
The main goal of the BFN of array antenna systems, is
recombination of the energy in a coherent fashion, so, in
to provide the appropriate amplitude and phase to each
the upper layers there are no information lost.
one of the elements of the array, in order to generate the
To achieve these characteristics, each BFN have been
desired beam in the desired radiation direction.
based on Gysel Cells [3] implemented in microstrip
Usually, the components included in the BFN are power
technology and interconnected forming a periodic
dividers, attenuators and phase shifters. Very often, the
structure.
design of the BFN results to be very critical, since all
The schematic prototype, shown in fig. 2, consists of
the complex excitations should be defined coherently,
cascading 3 identical BFN that feed, each one, a linear
i.e., defining the desired radiating direction by its
array of three antennas, conforming a 3 by 3 antenna
corresponding perpendicular phase plane.
array. In the same way, these three BFN are
Under this point of view, the desired radiation direction,
interconnected perpendicularly to each other by 2
the phase front defined at the antenna aperture, is clearly
identical BFN’s, thus we have only four inputs to the
over-sampled, since it has the same number of samples
complete BFN of the array.
than radiators.
In traditional systems, the beam scanning is made
From the geometric point of view, only three points are
applying a phase shift directly to each antenna element,
necessary to define a plane, so the exceeding points are
these means that for scanning a 3 by 3 antenna array is
simply redundant.
necessary to use 9 phase shifters and all the electronic
This observation has special relevance in the field of
associated to these equipment.
smart antennas, where each element has its own pair of
Our proposal reduces the use of phase shifters in a
attenuator and phase shifter to be controlled
factor of three. Of the 4 input ports of our BFN, one is
electronically to scan the beam. As the number of
used as reference and, each one of the other are
radiating elements increases, the complexity of the
associated to a phase shifter. Thus, the phase and
whole system also increases.
amplitude of each radiator will be dependent univocally
Some strategies have been proposed in order to reduce
of the amplitude and phase shift given at input ports.
the complexity of the system, using the electronic
The CORPS BFN, independently of the layers that
scanning in only one plane, controlling the phase of
could conform it, creates a progressive phase increment
rows or columns of radiating elements, and rotating
at output ports of the phase shift applied between the
mechanically the whole antenna to rotate the beam. [1]
two input ports, and the amplitude at output ports
Including the new philosophy of CORPS [2] it could be
presents a Gaussian shape making possible obtaining
possible to scan the beam in a tridimensional space by
scan angles up to 20 deg. for each 1x3 linear array [3].
defining a plane phase front with a really reduced
number of input ports.

Figure 1. Power flux throughout the structure. 2 input
ports with a phase shift of 60 deg Phases at output
ports are a lineal representation of phase at input ports.
3x3 Antenna Array
CORPS
Reference based BFN
Phase Shifters
Figure 2. Schematic representation of a 3x3 antenna
array feeding by CORPS based BFN.
3. WORKING PRINCIPLE
The working principle of the BFN based on CORPS are
related to the power flux throughout the network, thus,
considering its schematic representation, shown in fig.
1, using the conservation of energy and taking into
count that the network consists only on lossless passive
components. We can represent the behavior of the
designed BFN as a result of the characteristics of the
named Split and Recombination Nodes.
Split Nodes are such that have one input port and N
output ports. At each output port is delivered a Nth part
of the power introduced at input port, as can be
corroborated using the following expression [3]:
[ ]
N
W s = ∑ E k e ( jθ k ) G s
2
(1)
k =1
Here, WS is the power delivered at the N output ports of
Split node, and GS is the real part of the admittance seen
at output ports. In the same way, the Recombination
nodes are such that have one output port (N equal to 1)
and more than one input port. The power at output port
can be calculated, using:
[ ]G
N
( jθ k , 1 ) ( jθ k , 2 )
WR = ∑ E k ,1e
2
+ Ek ,2 e k (2)
k =1
After doing some simplifications on (2), the power at
output ports of a Recombination Node, can be expressed
as.
⎡N N
WR = G R ⎢∑ (E k ,1 ) + ∑ (E k , 2 )
2 2
⎣ k =1 k =1
(3)
N
⎤
+ 2∑ E k ,1 E k , 2 Cos (θ k ,1 − θ k , 2 )⎥
k =1 ⎦
With, G R one half of G s . In Fig 2 is considered a
BFN of two layers, in which we set up initially two
input ports of unitary amplitude, but with different
phase, this is:
( jθ )
Input Port 1: Ae ,
( j (θ + Δθ ))
and Input Port 2: Ae .
Where A is 1 and ∆θ is the phase shifting between ports
(in this case 60 deg). The power delivered at output
ports on layer 1 and 2 are calculated using (1) and (3).
From figure 1 we can see the lineal behavior of the
phase and its direct relation with ∆θ. In general, the
phase difference, between input port 1 and input port 2,
is translated to a lineal combination at output ports with
initial phase equal to port 1 and final phase equal to port
2.
4. 3 BY 3 ARRAY CASE STUDY
A 3 by 3 array system was simulated in order to
corroborate the concepts of CORPS applied to BFN. In
previous studies a linear 3 x 1 array was calculated and
measured as is shown in [3]. This study is related to a
complex system based in these previous results. Thus,
an array 3 by 3 was calculated using HFSS as shown in
figure 3. The array consists in 9 Yagi type radiators [4]
separated 0.5λ and 0.7λ, designed to work at 2.8GHz.
The array was designed using sub array systems of 3
antennas located normal to YoZ Plane (see fig. 3).
The behavior of the system is predicted, by one side,
calculating the amplitudes and phases arriving at the
input ports of each radiator as if they crossed through
BFN based on CORPS and, by other side, calculating
the radiation patterns and beam scanning using a
simulation software and results obtained in the previous
stage.

Figure 3. 3 x3 Yagi Antenna Array
Figure 4. 3x3 yagi antenna array Radiation Patern. The
array is feeding by a CORPS BFN with equal
amplitudes at input ports, and phases: θ1=0, θ2=45o,
θ3=45o and θ4=90o. As a result, the main beam is
scanned toward θ=100o and φ=10o.
The process following to calculate the amplitudes and
phases is as shown in formulas (1) and (3) and here will
be explained it using an example. First, we must
consider that our system is conformed by 9 radiators
(yagi Antennas) that are illuminated by only four input
ports, and our objective is to produce a beam that points
in the direction defined by theta 100 deg and Phi 10 deg.
This is an arbitrary direction in the radiation pattern in
which is necessary to combine the amplitudes and
phases thought the network in order to create a 45 deg
inclined plane (respect to YoZ plane) to feed the 3 by 3
antenna array.
Let A1...A4 =1 the input ports amplitudes and θ1 ...θ 4
the phases associated to this input ports. Let define A a
3 by 3 matrix of complex amplitudes feeding the
antenna array. Each element of A is calculated using (1)
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and (3) for each split and recombination node found by
the power throughout network. As a result, a 45 deg
plane to feed the antenna array is defined by:
⎡ 0,5∠0 0,65∠22,5 0,5∠45 ⎤
A = ⎢0,65∠22,5 0,85∠45 0,65∠67,5⎥⎥ ,
⎢
⎢⎣ 0,5∠45 0,65∠67,5 0,5∠90 ⎥⎦
The necessary phases to obtain this plane are:
θ1 = 0, θ 2 = 45, θ 3 = 45, θ 4 = 90 , thus by
this easy way we can scan the main beam to point to φ =
10 deg. and θ = 100 deg. The result radiation pattern is
shown in fig. 4.
In general terms, making an appropriate phases
combination at input ports (maintaining equals
amplitudes) is possible to define arbitrary planes to feed
the antenna array and, by this way, scan the main beam
to any desired direction located in a hemispherical
plane. The main beam can be scanned by aprox. 10 deg.
far away its boresight direction (normal to YoZ plane).
5. CONCLUSION
At this point, its easy to extrapolate the results obtained
here and conclude that it is possible to control bigger
systems, i.e., an N by N antenna array being scanned
only using 3 phase shifters applying the proposed design
methodology.
6. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This work have supported by the Spanish Government
by the project TIC2003-09317-C03-01.
7. REFERENCES
1. R. Vincenti Gatti, R. Sorrentino, “A Ka-band active
scanning array for mobile satellite terminals using slotted
waveguide technology,“ 25th Antenna Workshop on
Satellite Antenna Technology, ESTEC, Noordwijk, The
Netherlands, 18-20 Sept. 2002.
2. D. Betancourt, A. Ibañez, C. del Río, “Coherently Periodic
Radiation Structures (CORPS): A Step Towards High
Resolution Radiations Systems,” IEEE AP-S 2005,
Washington, USA, July 2005
3. D. Betancourt, C. del Rio, “Designing Feeding Networks
with CORPS: Coherently Radiating Periodic Structures,”
Microwave and Optical Technological Letters, Vol 48
No. 8 of 2006.
4. Quian Y, W. R. Deal, N. Kaneda and Itoh T, “Microstrip-
fed quasi-yagi antenna with broadband characteristics”,
Electronic Letters, Vol 34, No. 23, November of 1998,
pp. 2194-2196.