A 0.4 km 30 Mbps Ku-Band RF Link based on a 64-Element Transmit and Receive Phased Array Antenna

Phased array antennas are becoming more and more ubiquitous largely in part because of the provision within the 5G protocol for millimeter-wave beamforming. As silicon phased array beamforming core chips become widely available, this opens cost effective solutions for highly agile line of sight (LOS) communications links which utilize classical phased array antennas. This paper describes the development and demonstration of a 0.4 km RF link which operates in the Ku-Band (13.8 GHz), which supports up to 30 Mbps data rates. The developed system is demonstrated utilizing laboratory instruments as well as with a small form factor radio. The developed phased array antenna is able to maintain link at 0.4 km at scan angles up to ±60°, utilizing a digitally modulated signal (32-QAM) at a symbol rate of 5 Msym/s while maintaining an RMS EVM of less than 6%.