A dual polarized line source feed for cylindrical reflector antennas

A line source feed for an offset cylindrical parabolic reflector antenna is described. The line source consists of two transverse and longitudinal dipole arrays over a ground plane. The elements of each array are fed separately from a feed waveguide through a coaxial line, which is connected to a probe inserted into the waveguide. Within each waveguide these probes form a tapered array. The probes are treated as an N-port network to determine their penetration depth for a required Taylor distribution along the line source. The line source is then constructed and tested for both aperture field distribution and the input impedance. Its performance as a feed for an offset cylindrical parabolic reflector antenna is also studied.