Digital beamforming in KA-band satcom: calibration challenges and impacts of phase noise скачать в хорошем качестве

Digital beamforming in KA-band satcom: calibration challenges and impacts of phase noise

Divaydeep Sikri (GM & CTO Antenna) Satixfy UK presenting at Interlligent UK's 2024 RF & Microwave Design Seminar. With advancement in technology and space-economics, satellite communication is ushering in a new wave of digital revolution that will complement the advancements in terrestrial communications. New LEO satellite constellations covering a very diverse application space from Direct to Device and broadband communications in Ku and Ka bands have emerged or plan to emerge in near future. High Capacity Digital Payloads with large number of beams with wide coverage and ability to dynamically move capacity are at the forefront of this revolution, with digital beamforming at its core, powering new architectures of electronically steerable Phased Array Antennas. This presentation explored some of the salient features of digital beamforming, the advantages it offers and the technical challenges of calibrating the smart antenna arrays. The presentation also covered the impact of jitter and phase noise in the context of digital beamforming in particular for Ka band applications.