A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability

Liu, Weiwei; Zhang, Shiqiao; Zhang, Anxue; Chen, Wenchao

doi:10.3390/app15168982

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Open AccessArticle

A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability

¹

The School of Electronic and Information Engineering, Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an 710049, China

²

The Key Laboratory of All Optical Network and Advanced Telecommunication Network of Ministry of Education, Institute of Lightwave Technology, Beijing Jiaotong University, Beijing 100044, China

^*

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Appl. Sci. 2025, 15(16), 8982; https://doi.org/10.3390/app15168982 (registering DOI)

Submission received: 16 July 2025 / Revised: 13 August 2025 / Accepted: 13 August 2025 / Published: 14 August 2025

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Abstract

This paper presents a Ka-band cylindrical conformal transceiver active phased array (CCTAPA) with a full-azimuth scanning gain fluctuation of 0.8 dB and low power consumption. The array comprises 20 panels of 4 × 4 antenna elements, RF beam-control circuits, a Wilkinson power divider network, and frequency converters. The proposed three-subarray architecture enables ±9° beam scanning with minimal gain degradation. By dynamically switching subarrays and transceiver channels across azimuthal directions, the array achieves full 360° coverage with low gain fluctuation and power consumption. Fabrication and testing demonstrate a gain fluctuation of 0.8 dB, equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP) between 50.6 and 51.3 dBm, and a gain-to-noise-temperature ratio (G/T) ranging from −8 dB/K to −8.5 dB/K at 28.5 GHz. The RF power consumption remains below 8.73 W during full-azimuth scanning. This design is particularly suitable for airborne platforms requiring full-azimuth coverage with stringent power budgets.

Keywords: Ka-band; cylindrical conformal transceiver active phased array (CCTAPA); full-azimuth scanning; equivalent isotropically radiated power (EIRP); gain-to-noise-temperature ratio (G/T)

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MDPI and ACS Style

Liu, W.; Zhang, S.; Zhang, A.; Chen, W. A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability. Appl. Sci. 2025, 15, 8982. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15168982

AMA Style

Liu W, Zhang S, Zhang A, Chen W. A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability. Applied Sciences. 2025; 15(16):8982. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15168982

Chicago/Turabian Style

Liu, Weiwei, Shiqiao Zhang, Anxue Zhang, and Wenchao Chen. 2025. "A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability" Applied Sciences 15, no. 16: 8982. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15168982

APA Style

Liu, W., Zhang, S., Zhang, A., & Chen, W. (2025). A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability. Applied Sciences, 15(16), 8982. https://doi.org/10.3390/app15168982

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A High-Performance Ka-Band Cylindrical Conformal Transceiver Phased Array with Full-Azimuth Scanning Capability

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