The Need

Radiation pattern measurement/characterization is one of the key final steps in the performance verification and documentation of industrial antennas. One method of testing radiation pattern of an antenna is use of a very controlled test environment that is expensive to build and maintain. Another method of testing is to use small probe antennas in the near-field, then use mathematical methods to find the radiation pattern for the far-field. These tests are highly sensitive to positional repeatability of the probe antennas. Also, this method of testing requires that the interval samples be shorter than ½ the wavelength of interest, which is not viable for at millimeter-wave and terahertz frequencies, where wavelengths are extremely short. Currently, there is a need for a new method of antenna radiation pattern measurement that does not require costly test facilities while being a method that can be used for extremely short wavelength antennas.

The Technology

Researchers at The Ohio State University, led by Professor Kubilay Sertel, have developed a method of measuring the near-fields of a test antenna. In this method, the need for probe positioning is eliminated; furthermore, the need for mechanical motion in the near-field scan process is eliminated. This is done using compressive sensing reconstruction.

Commercial Applications

• Industrial antenna production
• Cellular network antennas
• Radio antennas
• Television broadcasting
• Infrared antennas

Benefits/Advantages

• No need for an expensive controlled testing environment
• Mechanical motion by probe antennas is not necessary
• Can be used for very short wavelength antennas