A Ku-band, low-sidelobe waveguide array employing radiating T-junctions

The design of a 16-element waveguide array employing radiating T-junctions that operates in the Ku band is described. Amplitude weighting results in low elevation sidelobe levels, while impedance matching provides a satisfactory VSWR, that are both achieved over a wide bandwidth (15.7-17.2 GHz). Simulation and measurement results, that agree very well, are presented. The design forms part of a 16 × 40 element waveguide array that achieves high gain and narrow beamwidths for use in an electronic-scanning radar system.