Wide-angle scanning with reflector antennas: A new design technique

Some applications, such as space-based radar, require wide-angle scanning and very narrow beamwidths. Hybrid antennas, which are reflector antennas fed by arrays, may provide an alternative to the use of large array antennas in these applications. This paper presents a numerical method for shaping the reflector to maximize the collected energy over the desired scan range. By experimenting with various feed array sizes and shapes, and using the methods presented herein to find the optimal reflector shape at each step, one may arrive at designs that minimize the feed array surface area while meeting various system design objectives such as scan range, aperture size, and aperture utilization. Optimization examples are provided for several feed array configurations, along with analyses of the resulting performance over the desired scan range.