Study of moving phase center antenna arrays using the FDTD method

Time modulated linear antenna arrays consisting of printed dipoles above a ground plane are simulated using the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) method. The FDTD method brings great convenience to the investigation of the time domain responses of moving phase center antenna arrays. In conjunction with the near-to-far field transformation in time domain, the far-field transient response can be computed to explain the physical essence of time modulated linear arrays with bidirectional phase center motion (BPCM). By employing the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) and the frequency domain near-to-far field transformation, the radiation patterns at the frequencies of interest are obtained and are compared with the measured results. Simulation results show that the FDTD method is an effective and accurate approach for the full-wave simulation of time modulated antenna arrays.