The electrical characteristics of a conical horn-reflector antenna employing a corrugated horn

The electrical properties of a conical horn-reflector antenna of 2-3 degrees beamwidth have been investigated over the frequency range of 12-18 GHz. It is shown that the employment of a corrugated horn reduces the characteristic spillover side lobe of the conical horn-reflector antenna by 15 dB and yields excellent main beam circularity over the full Ku band. This results from the taper of the field amplitude toward the edges of the horn aperture in both the E-plane and the H-plane illumination. The performance of the antenna makes it suitable for use in closely packed interferometers for radio astronomy.<
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