Antenna-Platform Interaction Study in Phased Array Antennas

Phased array antenna systems (PAAS) for radars need to consider the effect of the surrounding environment and the platform for mounting to correctly assess its performance in the field scenario. This paper discusses these aspects of the design and development of PAAS. A substrate integrated waveguide technology (SIW) based U-slot microstrip patch antenna (SIW_MPA) is designed with wide beam width and wide band performance and used for realizing the antenna array for PAAS. The design cycle of PAAS includes the single element design (isolated), element performance in array environment, followed by the effect of platform and surrounding structures on array performance. A hybridization of finite element method (FEM) and shooting bouncing ray (SBR) modules in electromagnetic (EM) solver, Ansys HFSS are utilized to carry out the various simulations. The results are quite informative and useful for mast mounted phased array antenna systems.