Preliminary design of foldable reconfigurable reflectarray for Ku-band satellite communication

This paper presents the recent activities carried out in the framework of the ESA Project RESKUE (Transportable REflectarray Antenna for Satellite KU-band Emergency Communications). Aim of this project is to assess the feasibility of a new generation foldable and transportable antenna for bidirectional satellite communications at Ku-band. The antenna should have RF performance comparable with those of current fly-away antennas and provide automatic satellite location and pointing. Electronically reconfigurable reflectarray architecture is proposed for an easy stowing, deployment and portability. The electrical performance of this antenna is analysed by varying several parameters of antenna in order to get a required specifications defined by the project.