A Simple and Accurate Method for Circularly Polarised Monopulse TM01 Tracking System Testing

The use of the calibration tower to test a monopulse tracking system is expensive and requires the antenna downtime. Alternative ways to test in-lab the tracking system are highly-desirable. This work proposes a simple yet effective structure achieving this objective through the controlled excitation of high-order modes in a circular waveguide that mimic those generated by the signal received from the calibration tower. The theoretical fundamentals are discussed and the design of the waveguide mode exciter at K band is reported, along with results showing its validation.