12-to-1 bandwidth all-metal Vivaldi array element

Presented here is a design for an all-metal ultra-wideband antenna element that can achieve bandwidth of 12:1. While the design itself is worth reporting in its own right, this array element was designed as part of a study on low-cost ultra- wide bandwidth arrays reported here. For more robust design validations, finite array simulations will also be performed to mimic the set of S-parameters collected as measured data. For the linear array, it is planned to collect a complete set of S-parameters. A meaningful sub-set of S-Parameter measurements are to be collected from the dual-polarized core as well. Scheduled for the near future are pattern measurements using a fixed set of static beam formers for several scan angles over roughly 700MHz to 10GHz.