Reflector shaping by optimization of wavefront shapes

The shaping of reflector antennas has generally been done by solving a system of partial differential equations (PDEs) which describe the ray tracking system. The technique has been very successful in many cases but has some difficulties with existence and uniqueness questions due to the PDE formulation. The author describes a technique which is based on direct optimization of the wavefronts in the system. The technique is very adaptable and has worked well in designing reflector systems for the Green Bank Telescope and dual reflector feeds for the spherical primaries at the Nancay and Arecibo Observatories.<>