Design and Prototype of a Phased-Array Antenna for Nanosatellite Radar and Communication Applications
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Abstract
Reconfigurable software defined radios are capable of altering radio frequency parameters of a transceiver to add functionality and improve performance. Initially static by design, reconfigurable radios have become common on nanosatellites, assisting in reduction of launch costs and addition of functionality. Antenna designs have also become reconfigurable, by being able to change frequency range, polarization and many other characteristics. Some antenna designs also perform lobe (beam) steering; however, they are not commercially available for nanosatellites. Some of the added benefits of beam steering are debris detection and satellite-to-satellite communication. Therefore, this research combines antenna frequency reconfigurability and beam steering using an array to design an antenna that can be mounted on a nanosatellite.