Multiple flared antenna horn with enhanced aperture efficiency

• US 20060119528A1
• Filed: 12/03/2004
• Published: 06/08/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Northrop Grumman Corporation
• Inventors: Bhattacharyya, Arun K., Sor, James
• Granted Patent: US 7,183,991 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/786
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/025 Multimode horn antennas; Horns using higher mode of propagation H01Q13/0241 takes precedence; multiple beam H01Q25/04

Abstract

An antenna horn having multiple flared sections with their slopes and lengths selected to enhance desirable electromagnetic modes and to suppress undesirable modes at the horn aperture, thereby increasing the aperture efficiency and antenna gain.

Claims

1. An antenna horn with enhanced aperture efficiency, the antenna horn comprising:

at least three contiguous flared horn sections, each of said horn sections having a rectangular cross section;

wherein a first of the flared horn sections, is adapted to be coupled to a rectangular waveguide and the last of the flared horn sections has rectangular aperture through which electromagnetic energy is coupled to or from space;

wherein the slopes and lengths of the flared horn sections are selected to enhance desirable electromagnetic modes at the aperture, thereby enhancing the aperture efficiency and antenna gain;

wherein the antenna horn has a total axial length no greater than twice the width of the aperture;

and wherein the desirable electromagnetic modes are TE modes and the flared horn sections are selected to enhance the TE modes and suppress any TM modes at the aperture.

2. An antenna horn as defined in claim 1, wherein the antenna horn has four flared horn sections.

3. An antenna horn claim 1, wherein the antenna horn emits TE mode electromagnetic waves at the horn'"'"'s aperture.

5. The antenna horn of claim 1 wherein the antenna horn emits TM mode waves at the horn aperture.

6. An antenna horn as defined in claim 1 wherein the horn has slope continuities between adjacent flared horn sections, but no step discontinuities.

4. (canceled)