A class of E-plane scan blindnesses in single-polarized arrays of tapered-slot antennas with a ground plane

A simple model has been postulated for predicting the existence and location of a class of E-plane scan blindnesses in single-polarized arrays of tapered-slot antennas. The blindnesses of interest occur in arrays that have H-plane element spacing greater than /spl lambda//sub 0//2. A simple dispersion relation is easily evaluated to obtain accurate estimates of the locations of scan blindnesses. The postulated model is not completely rigorous, but (i) it correctly models the dominant effects for this class of scan blindnesses, (ii) it has a simple physical interpretation, and (iii) the formula can be evaluated so easily that array designers can readily choose array parameters that prevent this type of blindness or they can determine if proposed or existing designs are likely to exhibit this scan blindness.