An efficient analysis & design methodology for slot antennas on microsatellites

Multi-functional antenna systems for microsatellites typically consist of arrays of low-profile elementary radiators, such as slot antennas, and are aimed to the concurrent generation of different radiation modes. We propose an original, simplified method for the analysis and design of slot antenna arrays, perfectly compatible with a Mixed Potentials Integral Equation formulation solved by Method of Moments (MoM-MPIE). Main features of the method are a novel characterization of the slot excitation, which allows a reduction of the complexity of the electromagnetic model, and a strategy based on Array Theory for the fast prediction of the radiation pattern. The combination of the two approaches results in a strongly reduced demand of computational resources, allowing the optimization and refinement of the radiation performance.