Robotically controlled directivity and gain measurements of integrated antennas at 280 GHz

摘要

In this paper a detailed description of an automated mm-wave antenna measurement setup is given, and gain and directivity measurement results are shown for a standard gain horn antenna and an integrated antenna at 280 GHz. The setup comprises a vector network analyzer (VNA) with frequency converters for different frequency bands, a six degree of freedom industrial robot, and a controller that provides the interface and controls the measurements. This setup makes it possible to measure gain, directivity, radiated power, and efficiency of both waveguide fed and integrated chip antennas at frequencies between 60 GHz and 330GHz with high accuracy. Furthermore, the setup is highly configurable. Arbitrary trajectories on arbitrary planes around the AUT (antenna under test) can be measured quickly without having to change any hardware.