Author:
Bennett C.A.,Hutchinson D.P.,Sitter D.N.,Richards R.K.,Simpson M.L.
Abstract
A single-detector heterodyne receiver is usually assumed to be illuminated by a gaussian-profile local oscillator beam. The reverse projection of this beam, usually called the antenna beam, completely specifies the field of view of the receiver system [1]. A receiver array requires an array of such local oscillator beams, and the resulting antenna beam array must behave so as to efficiently sample the image field. For example, an object in the far-field should be sampled by non-overlapping antenna beams, as should all objects beyond this plane. Furthermore, these non-overlapping beams should be spaced with the same geometry as the detector array for all points on the object plane and beyond.