Dual-band feed systems for SATCOM antenna applications

Dual and multi-band feed systems that enable reflector antennas to operate over multiple frequency bands have been used for some time. With newer generations of satellites, there is an increased demand for these types of feeds in satellite communications. At the same time, the requirements for performance such as bandwidth and band separation are becoming increasingly challenging, leading to the development of new techniques to achieve multi-band operation. This paper gives an overview of dual and multi-band feed development at BAE Systems Australia, and shows examples of some of the different techniques used to achieve the required performance.