Design considerations on a sparse array antenna for Ka-band spaceborne SAR applications

This contribution addresses the problem of designing a sparse active array antenna for spaceborne SAR applications at Ka-band. The main driver for the design is limiting the recurring manufacturing costs associated to the number of active modules, while preserving main performance and insuring a certain level of industrial feasibility. A sparse configuration based on linear subarrays is presented here, which allows a substantial reduction in the number of control points while maintaining the gain and thus the sensitivity of the benchmark regular array.