Low Cost Active Phased Array with Switchable Circular Polarization in Ka Band for SATCOM Application

This article presents the design and development of a switchable circular phased array antenna in reception for SATCOM polarization in frequencies from 17.7 GHz to 20.2 GHz. The design of the radiating element consists of a double patch with a hybrid couple to generate polarization LHCP/RHCP. The Xphased RFIC chip provides the phases for the sequential rotation to improve the axial ratio and phases for beam steering, in addition to switching the two polarizations. This array is upgradable to larger arrays to provide higher gain for SATCOM applications. In this paper, we will present the design of the radiating element, the design of subarray 2×2 and the characterization of the MMIC chip separately for subsequent integration.