Effect of Plasma on the Performance of Arrayed Antennas by Numerical Simulations

Plasma has a significant effect on radio communication between reentry vehicles and control station on the ground, as well as the communication between reentry vehicles and satellite in space. This kind of influence creates sharp power of navigation and control signal attenuation. However, when signal attenuation becomes increasingly serious, it can interrupt communication between reentry vehicles and control station or satellite, thereby resulting in blackout. Beamforming technology can improve the gain of wave direction of the satellite to reduce signal attenuation from the plasma. Plasma affects the performance of array antenna, which is mainly manifested in the change of parameters, such as the antenna pattern and reflection coefficient. Numerical simulation is applied in this paper to analyze the influence of array antenna parameters from the plasma. In addition, the measurement of antenna test validates the correctness of the simulation conclusion. The antenna reflection and attenuation of satellite navigation signal are serious with increasing plasma density.