A Scalable Ka-Band 256-Element Transmit Dual-Circularly-Polarized Planar Phased Array for SATCOM Application

With the rapid development of high throughput satellite and low-earth-orbit (LEO) satellite communication, the electronically steered array (ESA) antennas are desired. This paper has presented the design of a low profile Ka-band 256-element transmit dual-circularly-polarized planar phased array, which consists of $16 \times 16$ radiating antenna elements, 64 8-channel beamformers, a beam-forming network and a beam control unit. This antenna system has the advantages of low profile, light weight, high integration and flexible extensibility. It is a promising solution for LEO satcom application.