Statistical Performance of Circular Antenna Arrays

The radiation performance of circularly bound random arrays with uniform and Gaussian distributions are analyzed statistically to identify metrics of radiation pattern performance. Isotropic radiators are preferred in this analysis since they provide relevant information on the fundamental beamforming behavior, which can be applied to provide reasonable estimates and ideal limitations on the performance gain, peaking sidelobe, and average sidelobe behavior. Numerical results illustrate scanning from zenith to meridian elevation angles to evaluate the theory and compare the behavior of linear, planar circular, and volumetric spherical arrays against the traditional linear periodic array.