Effects of antenna mount on a spherical scanning measurement of the radiation efficiency of a wire antenna

Accurate evaluation of antenna directivity and radiation efficiency requires accurate measurement of the full spherical radiation pattern. The most common antennas used for communication systems, and measurements of electric fields are dipole and monopole wire antennas. The effects of antenna mounts on the measurement of a wire antenna are studied. A narrow band half-wave dipole antenna was measured, where various setups such as the orientation of the antenna with respect to the mount, and the scanner covered with and without RF absorber were investigated. The measured results were compared to numerical results of an ideal half-wave dipole antenna.