electronics
Communication
Uniform Linear Antenna Array Beamsteering Based on
Phase-Locked Loops
Anil Chepala , Vincent Fusco
Citation: Chepala, A.; Fusco, V.;
Naeem, U.; McKernan, A. Uniform
Linear Antenna Array Beamsteering
Based on Phase-Locked Loops.
Electronics 2023, 12, 780. https://
doi.org/10.3390/electronics12040780
Academic Editor: Djuradj Budimir
Received: 28 November 2022
Revised: 23 January 2023
Accepted: 1 February 2023
Published: 4 February 2023
Copyright: © 2023 by the authors.
Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
This article is an open access article
distributed under the terms and
conditions of the Creative Commons
Attribution (CC BY) license (https://
creativecommons.org/licenses/by/
4.0/).
Electronics 2023, 12, 780. https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics12040780
, Umair Naeem and Adrian McKernan *
The Institute of Electronics, Communications and Information Technology (ECIT), School of Electronics,
Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EEECS), Queen’s University Belfast, Belfast BT3 9DT, UK
* Correspondence: a.mckernan@qub.ac.uk
Abstract: Phased arrays are extensively used in many modern beam-scanning applications such as
radar and satellite communications. Electronic beam scanning makes phased arrays an important
aspect of modern antenna array systems. This Tutorial aims to promote the basic understanding
of the principle and operation of a phased array to general undergraduate students. This paper
starts with a discussion on the theory of operation and some basic definitions of antenna parameters
followed by derivations of two-element and N-element array patterns and, finally, a five-element
array design. The essential hardware based on Phase-Locked Loops (PLLs) as phase controllable RF
sources required to build an array and the basic tools required for software and measurement set-up
to demonstrate the beam-scanning phased array operation are presented. This enables students to
quickly understand and set-up an experiment to verify the phased array operation with commercial
off-the-shelf components. In addition, the hardware and software necessary for autonomous control
are discussed. By combining basic concepts of phase arrays with a series of simple coding and
intuitive laboratory experiments, students can easily understand the Uniform Linear Array (ULA)
scanning operation.
Keywords: linear antenna arrays; phased array; phase-locked loops; beam steering; tutorial; education
1. Introduction
Antenna selection is critical to any wireless system design [1]. Some of the design
criteria for an antenna are its frequency, bandwidth, physical size, and directivity [2]. The
application of the wireless system defines these criteria, for applications with long range
or direction-finding (e.g., satellite communications, power transfer, radar, localization), a
highly directive antenna allows for increased range and angular accuracy [3]. Antenna
arrays allow a directional antenna to be created from individual elements which can be
omni-directional [4]. Antenna arrays are composed of several antenna elements (often
identical) arranged in a particular geometric configuration (linear or planar) [5].
This paper deals with Uniform Linear Arrays. Phased arrays can be steered electroni-
cally by use of controllable phase shifters. These phase shifters can be analogue or digital.
This means that a linear array can electronically scan its beam quicker than antennas which
have to be mechanically rotated. Removing the need for mechanical rotation can simplify
the overall system design as well as reducing size and weight, therefore opening up more
applications. In this paper, we explore the theory behind ULA antenna design, particularly
in terms of how its physical size and directivity can be designed. We show how to create an
ULA demonstrator that uses PLLs as independent sources for each element, we also explain
how to measure the antenna radiation pattern and compare it to the theoretical results. A
design example is used to illustrate the theory and practical techniques are discussed. This
paper is organized as follows. In Section 2, we discuss the theory and the design aspects of
ULAs using numerical examples and also give the specification of our example problem
and use these criteria to discuss the basic definitions of antenna parameters with respect to
https://www.mdpi.com/journal/electronics
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 2 of 12

arrays. In Section 3, we discuss electronic beam-scanning techniques as applied to ULAs.

In Section 4, we implement these techniques on a fabricated antenna array and present
the hardware required for demonstration on a 5-element linear array. In Section 5, we
present basic requirements of the set-up for measurement and calibration along with the
measurement results. Finally, we conclude in Section 6.

2. Antenna Basics
The example problem in this paper is to design an ULA antenna array at 2.4 GHz
which has a gain of 10 dB and can be steered through ±60◦ in azimuth. The full design
criteria are given in Table 1.
The basic building block of an array is a single antenna, which is referred to as an
element in array terminology. For simplicity, in this paper, we use a half-wave dipole
positioned a quarter-wave over a ground plane (Ref. [1] gives details on dipole design
and fabrication), other element types such as patches or slots are often used in printed
arrays. The performance of this dipole will be stated by its frequency, return loss, and
gain/radiation pattern. The frequency of the antenna is the frequency at which it has the
highest return loss. (The return loss of the antenna is the dB ratio of the power applied
to the antenna and the power reflected back from it.) The gain of an antenna is “the ratio
of the intensity, in a given direction, to the radiation intensity that would be obtained if
the power accepted by the antenna was radiated isotropically” [2]. The 3 dB beamwidth
is the angle over which the power does not drop below 3 dB of peak power. Typically,
antenna directivity is shown in the radiation pattern, often directivity is quoted as a single
number in which case it is the peak directivity, which is defined as the ratio of the radiation
intensity in a given direction from the antenna to the radiation intensity averaged over all
directions [2]. The 10 dB bandwidth is the frequency span over which the return loss is
greater than 10 dB.

Table 1. Design parameters of ULA at 2.4 GHz.

Parameter Desired Range Value Single Element

Frequency (GHz) 2.4 2.4
Return loss (dB) 10 10
Gain (dB) 10 2.1
3 dB beamwidth (°) 21 Omni-directional
10 dB bandwidth (MHz) 100 100

2.1. Array Theory

There are six design parameters in an antenna array. They are the layout/geometrical
configuration, and number of elements, spacing of elements, excitation amplitude, exci-
tation phase, and element type/radiation pattern. In this paper, we are only interested
in the number of elements and the relative phase of each element. The other parameters
remain fixed as a linear array with each element spaced a distance of (λ/2) apart and every
element being a balun-fed dipole [1], all with the same excitation amplitude. To understand
the theory of arrays, we first start with the special case of a two-element array with equal
amplitude excitation [2]. The electric field at a point in the far-field from the two elements
is the sum of the electric fields of each individual element. If we assume that there is negli-
gible coupling between the elements, then we can consider each element independently
(Figure 1). For two identical dipole elements separated by distance d as shown in Figure 1,
their resultant electric fields at P is derived as shown from Equations (1)–(7).
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 3 of 12

A1 (θ1 , φ1 ) − j(kr1 − β ) .
E1 = e 2 ρ
1 (1)
r1
A2 (θ2 , φ2 ) − j(kr2 − β ) .
E2 = e 2 ρ
2 (2)
r2

Figure 1. A 2-element linear phased antenna array.

Here, A1 , A2 are the normalised field magnitudes at distances r1 , r2 and polarization

vectors ρ.1 , ρ.2 , respectively. k is the phase constant given by 2π/λ, β is the phase difference
between the two elements. θ1 , φ1 , and θ2 , φ2 are the positions in azimuth and elevation,
respectively, with reference to the array centre. Both elements are identical with the same
excitation amplitude; therefore, A1 = A2 , they are both physically aligned, so the same
polarization, therefore ρ.1 = ρ.2 . If we make the assumption that point P from Figure 1 is
sufficiently far away, then we can set θ1 = θ1 = θ and φ1 = φ2 = φ. This means that both
E1 and E2 can be written as below in Equation (3):
A (θ , φ ) β
E1 = E2 = 1 1 1 e− j(kr1 − 2 ) ρ. (3)
r1

As mentioned, the resultant field is the summation of the fields from each element.
The final simplified resultant far-field is given by Equation (7).

E = E1 + E2 (4)

A1 (θ, φ) h − j(k(r− d cos θ )− β ) d β i

E = ρ. e 2 2 + e − j ( k (r + 2 cos θ )+ 2 ) (5)
r

This can be simplified by moving the common factor of e− jkr ,

A1 (θ, φ) − jkr h j( kd cos θ + β ) d β i

E = ρ. e e 2 2 + e − j ( k 2 cos θ + 2 ) (6)
r
and further simplified by using Euler’s formula
  
A (θ, φ) − jkr kd cos θ + β
= ρ. 1 e 2 cos (7)
r 2

2.2. Uniform Linear Array with N Elements

The form in Equation (7) can be seen as two different attributes. The left-hand side is
related to the individual element and is called the Element Factor and the right is related to
the array and is called the Array Factor.

Total Field = Element f actor ( E.F ) × Array f actor ( A.F ). (8)

Electronics 2023, 12, 780 4 of 12

Hence, the total field E can be expressed as the product of field due to single element
and array factor. This is termed as pattern multiplication. This method is applicable to any
array consisting of identical elements. Therefore, the overall pattern can be controlled by
controlling the E.F or A.F or both.
 
kd cos θ + β
A.F = 2 cos (9)
2

A.F depends on the number of element (N), where N = 2, in the above Equation (9),
distance between the elements d, and the amplitude and phase excitations of the array
elements β. Having derived Equation (9) for the case of a two-element array, this can now
be generalised to an N-element array. The derivation shows that the field strength in the
far-field is given by the E.F times the A.F as from Equation (8). The A.F for an N-element
ULA is derived as follows:

A.F = 1 + e j(kd cos θ + β) + e j2(kd cos θ + β) + . . .

. . . + e j( N −1)(kd cos θ + β) .
N N
= ∑ e j(n−1)(kd cos θ+β) = ∑ e j(n−1)ψ (10)
n =1 n =1

where ψ = kd cos θ + β. This is sufficient for calculating the A.F. and is the basis of the
MATLAB code (source code is available [6]) used to plot the 2-element array in Figure 2.
However, a greater understanding of how the number of elements and progressive
phase affect the A.F. can be gained by further simplifying Equation (10). Multiplying both
sides by e jψ results in Equation (11) [2]:
  Nψ  
N −1
sin 2
A.F = e j( 2 )ψ     (11)
ψ
sin 2

For small values of ψ, this can be approximated to

  Nψ     Nψ  
sin 2 sin 2
A.F =    u    (12)
ψ ψ
sin 2 2

The peaks and nulls can be found by equating the A.F to 0 in (12). sin( Nψ/2) = 0
when ( Nπd cos θ + β)/2λ = nπ. Peaks occur when n 6= N, 2N, 3N, . . . and nulls occur
when n = 1, 2, 3, . . . . . . [2]. The total number of nulls and peaks is dependent on the
separation distance d and progressive phase β. The role of β in beam steering is discussed
in Section 2.3.
When A.F. = 0, Equation (12) can be solved for θ (Equation (13)) and used to calculate
the positions of peaks and nulls in the radiation pattern.
  
λ 2nπ
θn = arccos −β ± (13)
2πd N

Depending on the direction of maximum radiation, we can classify the array into a
broadside array (radiation maximum is perpendicular to the array length) and an end-fire
array (radiation maximum is along the array length) [2].
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 5 of 12

Figure 2. Simulated 2-element linear array radiation patterns.

2.3. Beam Steering

In order to scan the beam from one direction to the other, we have to change the
relative phase β between the elements [7]. To find the β needed to get a maximum in a
particular direction θ0 , the term ψ is set equal to zero, as given by Equation (14):

ψ = kd cos θ0 + β = 0 (14)
2π
β = −kd cos θ0 = − d cos θ0 (15)
λ
By solving the above equation for a given frequency and angle, the phase difference
necessary for a given scanning angle (Figure 3) can be derived. In the next section, we
apply these equations to design an array to meet the requirements of Table 1.

Figure 3. Linear phased antenna array.

3. N-Element Array Design

Given the specification in Table 1, we now calculate the number of elements needed to
meet those specifications. The total field of an array is a vector superposition of the fields
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 6 of 12

radiated by the individual elements. To provide a directive pattern, it is necessary that the
partial fields (generated by the individual elements) interfere constructively in the desired
direction and interfere destructively in the remaining space.
The estimated far-field patterns for different N values from 1 to 6 are calculated using
MATLAB [8] and are plotted in Figure 4. From Figure 4, it can be seen that at least 3 elements
would be needed to get gain to meet the specification; however, more elements are needed
to meet the beamwidth specification. So, we have selected N = 5 and the element spacing is
chosen to be λ/2 to meet the gain specification of 10 dBi and 21° as the 3 dB beamwidth.
These are now arranged along a straight line to from our ULA (Figure 5). The values of
progressive phase β for different beam scan angles is calculated using Equation (14). The
progressive phase shift β needed to steer the beam to angle θ is shown in Table 2.

Figure 4. Calculated radiation patterns for an array with 1 to 6 elements.

(a) (b)

Figure 5. A 5-element dipole ULA: (a) Fabricated prototype and (b) Return Loss measured.
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 7 of 12

Table 2. Setting parameters of ULA at 2.4 GHz.

Scan Angle (θ) Progressive Phase (β)

0 −180
30 −155.9
45 −127.3
60 −90
90 0
120 90
135 127.3

Defining Array Parameters

The definitions for antenna-related parameters can be found in [2]. Some have already
been defined in Section 2 and some which are relevant to arrays are defined below:
Beamwidth: In a plane containing the direction of the maximum of a beam, the angle
between the two directions in which the radiation intensity is one-half value of the beam.
Side Lobe Level (SLL): A side lobe is a radiation lobe in any direction other than the
intended lobe. Side lobes are normally the largest of the minor lobes. The level of minor
lobes is usually expressed as a ratio of the power density in the lobe in question to that of
the major lobe. This ratio is often termed the side lobe ratio or side lobe level.
Number of elements: This is the number of individual antennas that make up the
array, we have chosen 5 elements for the array; the greater the number of elements the
greater the directivity.
Phased array: An arrangement of antenna elements where the phase of each element
is controlled to steer the beam.
Phase excitations: The phase input to the elements on the arrays is termed as excita-
tion phase.
Maximum Beam scan angle: The maximum beam-scan angle for a linear array without
much beam-shape degradation is around ±60◦ , in the absence of mutual coupling, from
bore-sight.

4. Hardware Required
The radiating elements are 55 mm long with a balun of 33 mm connected to a rigid
coax. The elements are mounted on a wooden platform which was covered in metal foil to
create a ground plane (Figure 5a).
Each element is fed from a dedicated source provided by separate PLLs with a common
10 MHz reference connected to all PLLs. Phase-shifting is accomplished by shifting the
10 MHz reference signal fed to each PLL. Individual PLLs were chosen over a single
common source with phase shifters at RF because phase shifters will have varying losses
depending on the required shift; the power to each element decreases with the number of
elements; turning on off output amplifiers could affect loading of the phase shifter leading
to difficulty in calibration. A narrow-band phase shifter at the reference frequency allows
for phase-shifting to be accomplished across the full frequency band of the PLL, to achieve
this at RF, a wideband phase shifter would be needed. Multiple PLLs also remove the need
for a corporate feed network [9].
The topology for each element is shown in Figure 6. A 10 MHz reference is applied
to the PLL board and individually buffered to each PLL [10] by a CMOS hex inverter [11].
The phase of the 10 MHz reference to each PLL passes through a phase shifter based on a
varactor diode [12]. The phase of the output, the RF signal from the PLL, is adjusted by
varying the DC voltage on the varactor. Applying the phase shift before the PLL allows
for a constant output power irrespective of phase shift applied, also the system can be
expanded by adding more PLL boards. The output of the PLL is then connected to a
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 8 of 12

digitally controlled attenuator [13]. This allows for the power level of each PLL to be
adjusted to compensate for variance in PLL output power between circuits as well as
allowing for future work, where the excitation level can be adjusted as well as the phase.
The output of the attenuator is then connected to an amplifier; in this case, an LNA [14],
as this demonstration does not require high power transmission. The LNA increases the
power output of each circuit as well as providing 30 dB of isolation between PLL and
element; this isolation reduces the effect of a neighbouring radiating element with different
phase, changing the phase of a PLL oscillator. In addition, the PLLs selected have frequency
dividers available between the internal oscillator and RF output, this allows the PLL to
be configured with the internal oscillator running at twice the RF frequency; again, this
aids in isolating one PLL from any signal coupled to it from the antenna or PCB affecting
its phase. Each LNA can be switched off to allow the output of each PLL to be measured
independently and adjusted while still being connected to the antenna array.

Figure 6. Block diagram for a 5-element ULA set-up.

To control the array, each PLL, attenuator, LNA, and phase shifter are connected to a
dedicated microcontroller [15]. All the microcontrollers are connected to a single RS485
network with a CAT5e cable used to connect this to control the computer via an RS485 to a
serial adapter. A combination of custom firmware for the micrcontrollers and a Windows
desktop application allow each PLL to be controlled individually from a remote computer.
In this experiment, a 20 m cable was used to allow the control computer to be outside of
the anechoic chamber. Schematics and production files for the PLL array along with source
code and MATLAB [8] scripts can be found in the supporting material [6]. The PLLs are
individually bench-tested to verify their power output and phase-shifting performance
before integration with the ULA (Figure 7).

Figure 7. PLL boards testing before integration with the ULA.

5. Measurement on ULA
A 10 m × 5 m × 5 m anechoic chamber was used for the experimental measurements of
radiation patterns [16]. The linear array was used as the transmitter as shown in Figure 5a.
A common 10 MHz reference was fed to all PLLs, the dual channel IF receiver, and LO
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 9 of 12

signal generator (as seen in Figure 8). One channel of the IF receiver is fed with the output
of one PLL via a directional coupler (to reduce the power level and remove any DC) mixed
with the LO signal and the second channel comes from the receiving horn in the far field
mixed with the LO. The radiation pattern measurement set-up in the anechoic chamber
with all the hardware to test is shown in Figure 9. In the next section, we describe how we
phase and power-align each PLL in the far field using the anechoic chamber acquisition
system (Figure 8).

Figure 8. Radiation pattern measurement set-up for 5-element ULA in anechoic chamber representation.

Figure 9. Radiation pattern measurement set-up for 5-element ULA in anechoic chamber.
Electronics 2023, 12, 780 10 of 12

Calibration Process and Pattern Measurement

Calibration of the transmitter array is essential before measuring the patterns in order
for all phases from the elements to be aligned with respect to the receiver. The procedure is
to firstly mechanically align the transmitter with receiver so as the transmitter’s broadside
is normal to the direction of the receiver. Each PLL is muted while leaving its oscillator on
and its LNA turned off. Then, each PLL is turned on, one at a time, and the far-field power
and phase resulting from each element are measured and adjusted. Once all PLLs/elements
have been set, all LNAs are turned on and the pattern can be measured. As the antenna
array is connected to the PLL array by coaxial cables, this allows for compensation for any
phase differences resulting form cable length mismatches.
The entire procedure is depicted in the flowchart shown in Figure 10. The progressive
phase settings corresponding to different beam-pointing angles is set using the custom
Windows−based program [6]. Simulated patterns, created using source code from [6]
based on Equation (10), are show plotted against the measured patterns in Figure 11 and
the results are in good agreement. The minor discrepancies can be attributed to fabrication
tolerances and mutual coupling effect, which is left for the students to understand in
depth. This completes the entire process, right from the theory, design, fabrication, and
demonstration of ULA and its beam-scanning ability.
The current hardware does not utilise any measurement of phase in the PLL array;
however, the PLL used has a differential output with the negative terminal currently
terminated with a 50 Ohm load. This second RF output of each PLL could be compared
with a selected PLL as a reference through a phase comparator. As the micro-controller
has multiple analogue inputs, the DC phase reference signal could be used to tune the
DAC output controlling the 10 MHz reference phase shifter. This would allow the control
software to send a desired phase offset instead of a voltage, thus allowing for different
beam angles to be automatically configured without user interaction.

Figure 10. Radiation pattern measurement procedure in a flowchart.

Electronics 2023, 12, 780 11 of 12

Figure 11. Phased-array simulated and measured patterns.

6. Conclusions
The principle operation of antenna arrays, in particular ULA, their theoretical foun-
dation and understanding of beamforming, and then, scanning properties with hardware
demonstration has been described by using concepts taught in undergraduate antenna
theory. To promote a better understanding and visualisation of phased antenna arrays, a
laboratory demonstrator involving off-the-shelf components that can be easily purchased
and integrated are used in the experiments. This enables students to do some basic coding
based on theory and realise the operation with a simple experimental demonstrator. In
addition, the basic definitions of design parameters commonly associated with antenna ar-
rays are described with simple mathematical equations to quantify them. The experimental
hardware gives students the opportunity to explore the flexibility of the ULAs by varying
other parameters of the array. The measured radiation patterns are in close agreement with
the basic simulations carried out using MATLAB code. The reasons for the deviations are
also discussed, such as mutual coupling, etc. The use of a conducting back-plate reflector
for minimising back-radiation is also presented. By combining descriptive, analytical,
and experimental teaching methods, the students can be motivated to explore further this
antenna array field and reinforce their understanding of the principles of phased arrays
and their use in communication and radars.

Author Contributions: Conceptualization V.F. Methodology V.F., U.N. and A.C.; software A.C. and
A.M.; Hardware A.M.; Measurements A.M., A.C. and U.N.; formal analysis A.C.; writing—original
draft preparation A.C.; writing—review and editing V.F. and A.M.; funding acquisition V.F. All
authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.
Funding: This work was supported in part by the Queens University of Belfast Studentship and
in part by the U.K. Engineering and Physical Science Research Council (EPSRC) under Grant
EP/P000673/1: Low-complexity processing for mm-Wave massive MIMO and Grant EP/N020391/1:
Informed RF for 5G and Beyond.
Data Availability Statement: A repository of design files and source code is available in the cited
references.
Acknowledgments: The authors would also like to thank Kieran Rainey for fabrication and testing
of the MMCA.
Conflicts of Interest: The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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