Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics – Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
Scientific paper
2010-12-17
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
35 pages, 14 figures; accepted for publication in PASP
Scientific paper
Interferometric millimeter observations of the cosmic microwave background and clusters of galaxies with arcmin resolutions require antenna arrays with short spacings. Having all antennas co-mounted on a single steerable platform sets limits to the overall weight. A 25 kg lightweight novel carbon-fiber design for a 1.2 m diameter Cassegrain antenna is presented. The finite element analysis predicts excellent structural behavior under gravity, wind and thermal load. The primary and secondary mirror surfaces are aluminum coated with a thin TiO$_2$ top layer for protection. A low beam sidelobe level is achieved with a Gaussian feed illumination pattern with edge taper, designed based on feedhorn antenna simulations and verified in a far field beam pattern measurement. A shielding baffle reduces inter-antenna coupling to below $\sim$ -135 dB. The overall antenna efficiency, including a series of efficiency factors, is estimated to be around 60%, with major losses coming from the feed spillover and secondary blocking. With this new antenna, a detection rate of about 50 clusters per year is anticipated in a 13-element array operation.
Altamirano Pablo
Chen Ming-Tang
Granet Christophe
Han Chih-Chiang
Ho Paul T. P.
No associations
LandOfFree
1.2 Meter Shielded Cassegrain Antenna for Close-Packed Radio Interferometer does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.
If you have personal experience with 1.2 Meter Shielded Cassegrain Antenna for Close-Packed Radio Interferometer, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and 1.2 Meter Shielded Cassegrain Antenna for Close-Packed Radio Interferometer will most certainly appreciate the feedback.
Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-638891