Design and experimental verification of near-field Ka-band probe based on wideband OMJ with minimum higher-order spherical mode content

A desired feature of modern field probes is that the useable bandwidth should exceed that of the Antenna Under Test (AUT) [1]. Recent developments in probe and orthomode junctions (OMJ) technology has shown that bandwidths of up to 4:1 are achievable [2-5]. The probes are based on inverted ridge technology capable of maintaining the same high performance standards of traditional probes However, in typical Spherical Near Field (SNF) measurement scenarios, the applicable frequency range of the single probe can also be limited by the content of μ≠1 spherical modes in the probe pattern [6-7].

This is because the traditional NFtoFF software applies probe correction under the assumption that the probe pattern is fully specified from knowledge of the E-and H-plane patterns only [8]. While this condition is guaranteed for virtually any type of probe for small illumination angles of the AUT and/or a long probe/AUT distance this assumption may lead to unacceptable errors in special cases.

This paper describes the design and experimental verification of a Ka-band probe based on the inverted ridge technology. The probe is intended for high precision SNF measurements in special conditions that require less than -45dB higher order spherical mode content. This performance level has been accomplished through careful design of the probe and meticulous selection of the components used in the external balanced feeding scheme.

The paper reports on the electrical and mechanical design considerations and the experimental verification of the modal content.