Lenses Combined with Array Antennas for the Next Generation of Terrestrial and Satellite Communication Systems

Abstract

The current worldwide energy and economical crisis has triggered the need for more sustainable technological solutions to implement energy-efficient next generation communication systems, which should also be commercially viable and cost-effective. Moreover, future terrestrial and satellite communications will bring a wide range of use cases, services, and environments with very different requirements and specifications to ful-fill in order to generate a smart digital, fully connected society. Designing new antennas for each single application is not feasible since it is very complex to meet the customer's demand in the short run, and antenna system solutions that are easily re-configurable to be re-used in diverse scenarios are needed. The combination of lenses with traditional phased array antennas (also known as dome antennas) is a promising way of mixing the advantages of both antenna technologies and optimizing the performance of our systems depending on the use case scenario. This article discusses the industrial and technical potential of using dome antennas implemented in different technologies for expected use cases and applications of future terrestrial and satellite communication systems.