Application of a micro-genetic algorithm to planar near-field antenna measurements

A method useful for computing far-field antenna patterns from near-field measurements is presented. The method replaces the antenna under test (AUT) by a set of equivalent magnetic currents (EMC), and a micro-genetic algorithm (MGA) is used to optimize the amplitudes of the EMC from the near-field data. The optimized currents should reproduce the AUT far-field pattern. Numerical results using synthetic near-field data are reported and discussed.