Abstract
Offset parabolic reflector antennas are well-known for their very simple configurations and are widely used. However, low antenna gain sometimes results in inconvenient operation. In order to increase the antenna gain, an array feed is generally employed to correct the antenna aperture distribution. However, accurate and low-loss realization methods for array feeds were not studied sufficiently. In this work, radiation pattern synthesis is first performed at the array feed to achieve uniform aperture distribution. As a result of this synthesis, the array excitation coefficients are determined. Further, accurate design methods for corporate feed line networks to obtain the required excitation coefficients and low feeder loss through electromagnetic simulations are described. Finally, the designed array feed is fabricated, and the measured radiation patterns are compared with the calculated results. Moreover, the array feed is combined with the fabricated offset reflector, and the antenna radiation patterns and gains are obtained. An increase in the antenna gain is ensured.