Pattern synthesis for the cylindrical polarimetric phased array radar (CPPAR)

Abstract

A new optimization algorithm for the Cylindrical Polarimetric Phased Array Radar (CPPAR) antenna pattern synthesis is presented to achieve multi-mission requirements. To allow accurate weather measurements, the CPPAR antenna needs to have matched co-polarization (H and V) patterns, low sidelobe levels and high cross-polarization purity. To achieve these goals, first, a high-performance dual-polarized hybrid-fed microstrip patch antenna is designed, and its embedded radiation pattern is extracted. Then, a pattern synthesis using a new optimization method is presented to find the optimal weights for each radiating element and each polarization. The modified particle swarm optimization (MPSO) with new features is used to optimize the current distribution of the CPPAR. The adaptive beamforming algorithm also has the capability to mitigate interference by steering nulls of the radiation pattern in the desired direction without affecting the main beam. The performance improvement is demonstrated through the simulation results.