Ka-band multi-beam antenna

Multi-beam antennas (MBA) have become a key component in satellite communications systems. We briefly introduce ETRI´s first step toward a satellite MBA based on phased array technology. From this research, we have learned much about multi-beam antennas and also found tremendous problems in design, real implementation, assembling, and testing. We did not take thermal effects into consideration for using low power SSPAs, but they should be extensively analyzed in the next phase of this research. The MBA system based on phased array technology shows a good solution to future services through satellites, yet it still has some risks to be put into practice. Therefore, we should give much consideration before deploying it into real space.