Modern near-field and diagnostic antenna measurements

Summary form only given, as follows. The last decade of the 20th century has seen rapid growth in automation of antenna measurements and the wide adoption of near-field measurement techniques as the best solution for many applications. This presentation reviews advances in near-field technology, which continue to increase productivity and reduce cost. These include use of much higher speed RF equipment, extension to sub-millimeter wave frequencies, novel scanning robot systems and techniques, advances in optical tracking systems to improve positioning accuracy, and development of improved error suppression techniques. There have also been significant advances in software control and the man-machine interface to automate the process of collecting and analyzing large amounts of multi-beam and multi-frequency data on sophisticated antennas. Finally, the use of the holographic back-projection technique has helped immensely in diagnosing faults in antennas and in tuning complex phased array antennas.