Automated Computer-Based Facility for Measurement of Near-Field Structure of Microwave Radiators and Scatterers

An automatic facility for measuring the three-dimensional structure of the near fields of microwave radiators and scatterers is described. The amplitude and phase for different polarization components can be recorded in analog and digital form using a microprocessor-based system. The stored data are transferred to a large high-speed computer for bulk processing and for the production of isophot and equiphase contour maps or profiles. The performance of the system is demonstrated through results for a single conical horn, for interacting rectangular horns, for multiple cylindrical scatterers, and for the fields inside an absorber lined chamber.