Antenna time-domain measurement techniques

Abstract

The results of an experimental study, in which time-domain pulses are used to measure the far-field characteristics of an antenna, are presented. Pulses with duration and rise time of the order of 50 ps are generated, in order to characterize the complete frequency (1-18 GHz) behavior of an antenna. An X-band standard-gain horn has been used to verify the overall performance of the measurement system. Excellent agreement between the time-domain and the frequency-domain measurements has been observed. This paper describes the antenna time-domain measurement (ATDM) technique, time-domain gating, the error sources, and the advantages and the disadvantages of such a measurement technique.