Aperture antennas for solar systems

Alan J. Sangster

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

Abstract

In antenna terms, solar power collectors arguably reside largely in the 'aperture antenna' camp. Consequently, Chap. 4 endeavours to provide the reader with a fundamental appreciation of the radiation characteristics of aperture antennas by deriving the key integral equation for the magnetic vector potential Am from the Maxwell equations. The Am equation, as we shall see in Chap. 8, is the route into geometrical optics, an analytical technique which represents the 'bedrock' of reflector antenna design. With a knowledge of Am that has been secured, the radiation properties of some regularly shaped apertures are then examined, and this leads to the derivation of spectrum functions which relate the far radiation field of the antenna, to the near or aperture field, through a Fourier transform pair. The relationships that exist between antenna directivity, gain, radiation efficiency and sidelobes and how these basic properties are influenced by the aperture field distribution of the given antenna are studied in detail, for both two-dimensional and three-dimensional radiation pattern embodiments.

Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationGreen Energy and Technology
PublisherSpringer
Pages73-95
Number of pages23
Volume194
ISBN (Print)9783319085111
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 1 Jan 2014

Publication series

NameGreen Energy and Technology
Volume194
ISSN (Print)18653529
ISSN (Electronic)18653537

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Energy Engineering and Power Technology
  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
  • Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering
  • Management, Monitoring, Policy and Law

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