Wideband tracking of characteristic modes

An overview of the problem of modal tracking in the discipline of characteristic modes is discussed and results of a proposed solution presented. It is placed in the historical context of mode tracking and alternatives are discussed, with reasons given for why they are not applicable to characteristic modes, requiring the development of a wideband modal tracking algorithm applicable to characteristic modes. The proposed algorithm has been successfully tested over the past few years on over one hundred antennas, enabling the authors to understand its performance and limitations in detail.