Calibration of a dipole antenna by horn antennas in a frequency range from 1.0 GHz to 2.5 GHz

Experiments on dipole antenna calibration were carried out using pyramidal standard gain horn antennas to establish a field-strength standard in the frequency range from 1.0 GHz to 2.5 GHz. A direct connection method for evaluation of the dipole antenna balun loss is also investigated at 1.2 GHz and 1.7 GHz. It is shown that the direct connection method and calibration by a horn antenna give a close approximation of balun loss in a dipole antenna. While the horn antenna calibration is suitable for measuring frequencies above 1 GHz, the direct connection method is useful for dipole antennas using the parallel-line-type balun in the higher frequency range of the UHF band.<>