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 | Design a large antenna array and optimize its multiple design variables to achieve desired transmission/reception characteristics. |
Drone-based photography in Mars or landing on the moon has become a realized dream today due to tremendous advancement in radio-communication technology. Intelligently designed antenna arrays are potential contributors for transmission and reception of such long distant signals. Large arrays of antennas find applications in recent technologies like in square kilometer array or in massive MIMO communication. When array size is electrically large like in reflector arrays, it urges for large amount of computational time and infrastructure, followed by a complex theoretical characterization. In such practical design applications of large arrays, MATLAB® based toolboxes like Antenna Toolbox™ and Optimization Toolbox™ can be potential solution for fast computation with limited resource.
Use Antenna Toolbox™ to characterize and optimize the desired transmission and reception characteristics of large antenna arrays. Unlike the popular stochastic approximation of array analysis, Antenna Toolbox provides a full-wave electromagnetic simulation to achieve more accurate results.
Suggested steps:
- Use the design function on an existing antenna catalog in Antenna Toolbox to design an isolated antenna element at any arbitrary frequency.
- Use array catalog of Antenna Toolbox to define a large array.
- Optimize multiple design parameters of the large array like antenna physical parameters, inter-element spacing or tilting, etc. using Antenna Toolbox in association with other MATLAB optimization Toolboxes.
- Compare large finite arrays with infinite array analysis of Antenna Toolbox and investigate the difference in the far-field radiation patterns. See this example
Advanced project work:
Currently design function provides the initial design of isolated metal only antenna.
- Use the simulation data obtained using Antenna Toolbox to build a data-driven prediction modelling of initial design parameters of the large array.
- Derive standard design models for different class of arrays for different antenna elements.
Suggested readings:
[1] E.W. Reid, L. Ortiz-Balbuena, A. Ghadiri, and K. Moez, "A 324-Element Vivaldi Antenna Array for Radio Astronomy Instrumentation", IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, 61(1):2012.
[2] M. Ivashina, and J.D.B.A. van Ardenne. "A way to improve the field of view of the radio telescope with a dense focal plane array", 12th International Conference Microwave and Telecommunication Technology, 2002.
Advance long distance communication capabilities for astronomical applications
5G, Smart Antennas, Wireless Communication, Optimization
Master's
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