Small-diameter Earth terminal transmission issues in support of high data rate mobile satellite service applications

There is a growing interest by the DoD and by industry in the use of small-diameter, directional antennas in the Ku- and Ka-band frequency ranges, in order to support peer-to-peer connectivity in the Mbps data rate range. This is normally accompanied by relatively high Earth terminal (ET) transmit powers which, together with the directionality of the antenna system, may result in unacceptable off-axis ET transmission levels relative to national and international criteria. The purpose of this paper is to highlight the challenges involved in designing this type of Earth terminal in the face of evolving ET transmission limits.