Phased Array Applications to Improve Troposcatter Communications

Abstract

Typical troposcatter communications systems use dish antennas to focus the beams in the direction of a shared common volume between the transmitter and receiver. However, measurements have shown that the best common volume is often not one small area, but multiple areas which can be unequally distributed, as the scattering medium is often not homogeneous. By using a phased array, we can match the transmitted beam shape to the scattering medium dynamically and thereby increase the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR)/data rate for a given transmit aperture and power. Techniques for maximizing SNR with phased arrays with troposcatter communications are discussed.