Analysis of performance of active phased array antennas with distorted plane error

Abstract

The analysis of the degradation of electromagnetic performance of active phased array antennas (APAA) with distorted plane error is an important factor for manufacturing high-performance antennas. To obtain the relation between the plane distortion and electric index to provide significant guidance for the engineer, a coupled structural-electromagnetic model of an APAA is developed, which describes the effect on the performance of the distorted plane error caused by the bent and bowl shape distortion in the radiated element position. The application of the model to a planar APAA demonstrates the degradation of the sidelobe level and gain of antenna with different distortion grades. The satisfactory results provide a theoretical guidance for the engineer to determine the structural tolerance.