ANTENNAS AND WAVE PROPAGATION

20EC C09
B.E (ECE) – IV Semester

- Horn Antenna
j

Dr. N. V. Koteswara Rao

Department of ECE
CBIT(A)
Prof. N. V. K. Rao 1
 HORN ANTENNAS
• One of the simplest and probably the most widely used microwave antenna
is the horn.

• Its revival began in the late 1930s from the interest in microwaves and
waveguide transmission lines during the period of World War II, since that
time a number of articles have been written describing its radiation
mechanism, optimization design methods, and applications.

• The horn is widely used as a feed j element for large radio astronomy,
satellite tracking, and communication dishes found installed throughout the
world.

• It is a common element of phased arrays and serves as a universal standard

for calibration and gain measurements of other high-gain antennas.

• Its widespread applicability stems from its simplicity in construction, ease of

excitation, versatility, large gain, and preferred overall performance.

2
 The H-plane sectoral horn is one whose
opening is flared in the direction of the
H-field

The E-plane sectoral

horn is one whose
opening is flared in the
direction of the E-field
j

Combination of
E- and H-plane
sectoral horns is a
Pyramidal Horn

Typical electromagnetic horn antenna configurations.

3
 H-PLANE SECTORAL HORN

E-PLANE SECTORAL HORN

PYRAMIDAL HORN ANTENNAS

4
 j

Typical standard X-band

(8.2–12.4 GHz) pyramidal
horn antenna

5
The radiation pattern of a horn antenna is a Spherical Wave front. The
following figure shows the radiation pattern of horn antenna. The wave
radiates from the aperture, minimizing the diffraction of waves. The flaring
keeps the beam focussed. The radiated beam has high directivity.

Advantages :
Small minor lobes are formed
Impedance matching is good
Greater directivity
j
Narrower beam width

Disadvantages:
Designing of flare angle,
Applications: decides the directivity
Used for astronomical studies Flare angle and length of
Used in microwave applications the flare should not be
very small
RECTANGULAR WAVEGUIDE

TE10
7
j

8
E-PLANE SECTORAL HORN

The E-plane
sectoral horn
is one whose
opening is
flared in the
direction of
the E-field and
j a detailed
geometry is
shown below:

9
To better understand the performance of an E-plane sectoral horn, a three-
dimensional normalized field pattern is shown below:

Three-dimensional
field pattern of
E-plane sectoral horn
(𝜌1 = 6λ, b1 = 2.75λ,
a = 0.5λ).
j

10
 j

E- and H-plane patterns of an E-plane sectoral horn.

11
 j

E-plane patterns of E-plane sectoral horn for

constant length and different included angles.
12
 H-PLANE SECTORAL HORN

Flaring the dimensions of a rectangular waveguide in the direction of

the H-field, while keeping the other constant, forms an H-plane
sectoral horn shown in Figures (a) and (b). and The analysis
procedure for this horn is similar to that for the E-plane horn

13
j

14
 j

Three-dimensional field pattern of an H-plane sectoral horn

𝜌2 = 6λ, a1 = 5.5λ, b = 0.25λ
 j

E- and H-plane patterns of H-plane sectoral horn.

16
 PYRAMIDAL HORN
The most widely used horn is the one which is flared in both directions.

It is widely referred to as a pyramidal horn, and its radiation

characteristics are essentially a combination of the E- and H-plane
sectoral horns.

17
a > b
j

18
Aperture Fields, Equivalent, and Radiated Fields

To simplify the analysis and to maintain a modeling that leads to

computations that have been shown to correlate well with
experimental data, the tangential components of the E- and H-fields
over the aperture of the horn are approximated by

The equivalent current densities by

19
 Three-dimensional field pattern of a pyramidal horn
(𝜌1 = 𝜌2 = 6λ, a1 = 5.5λ, b1 = 2.75λ, a = 0.5λ, b = 0.25λ).

20
Three-dimensional field pattern of a pyramidal horn with maximum not on axis
(𝜌1 = 𝜌2 = 6λ, a1 = 12λ, b1 = 6λ, a = 0.5λ, b = 0.25λ).
21
Horn Antennas ….Summary
j

22
The radiation pattern of a horn antenna is a Spherical Wave front. The
following figure shows the radiation pattern of horn antenna. The wave
radiates from the aperture, minimizing the diffraction of waves. The flaring
keeps the beam focussed. The radiated beam has high directivity.

Advantages :
Small minor lobes are formed
Impedance matching is good
Greater directivity
j
Narrower beam width

Disadvantages:
Designing of flare angle,
Applications: decides the directivity
Used for astronomical studies Flare angle and length of
Used in microwave applications the flare should not be
very small
 Horn Antenna Theory Basics
• The horn antenna is essentially a section of waveguide where the
open end is flared to provide a transition to the areas of free space.

• Waveguides are generally one of two shapes: rectangular or circular.

By far the most widely used of these two is the rectangular form.

• Waveguide theory indicates that there are several modes of

propagation that can occur within
j a waveguide. The most widely
used is the TE10 mode and this is indicated in the diagram below.

• As the waveguide is rectangular it will have different dimensions for

each side. For the horn antenna theory and calculations these will be
taken that it has a width a and height b, with a>b.

• The horn antenna is a simple development of the waveguide

transmission line. Using some simple theory, it is quite possible to
see how the horn antenna works.
• It is quite possible to leave a waveguide open and let signal radiate from
this. However this is not particularly efficient. Signals passing along the
waveguide see a sudden transition from the waveguide to free space which
has an impedance of around 377Ω.

• The result of this sudden transition is to cause signals to be reflected back

long the waveguide as standing waves - theory shows that this is exactly
the same as for poor matches at the end of coaxial or other forms of wire
based transmission lines.

• To overcome this issue, the waveguidej

can be tapered out or flared. This
has the effect of providing a gradual transition from the impedance of the
waveguide to that of free space. In effect it acts like a progressive matching
transformer. The flare functions similarly to a tapered transmission line, or
an optical medium with a smoothly varying refractive index. In addition,
the wide aperture of the horn projects the waves in a narrow beam.

• The horn type that provides the most effective match is the exponential
horn. However pyramid or conical horns give a sufficiently good match for
most applications, and they are far easier and much cheaper to fabricate.
 Horn antenna angle of flare
• One of the key properties of the horn antenna is the angle at which
the horn flares out. This affects many areas of the performance
including the gain and directivity as described below.

• The angle of flare is defined in the diagram below and there can be a
different angle for both the E-plane (E field) and the H-plane (H
field. These are referred to as θE and θH.

j
 Horn antenna theory for radiation
• In order to understand how a horn antenna radiates, some simple
explanations and theory can be used.

• The waves of the signal will propagate down the horn antenna
towards the aperture. As they travel along the flared opening, the
waves travel as spherical wave fronts, having their apex at the apex
of the horn - a point referred to as the phase centre of the horn
antenna.
j
• As the phase front progressing along the horn antenna are spherical,
the phase increases smoothly from the edges of the aperture plane to
the centre.

• The difference in phase between the centre point and the edges is
called the phase error. This increases with the flare angle reducing
the gain, but increasing the beam width.

• As a result horn antennas have wider beam widths when compared

to similar-sized plane-wave antennas like parabolic reflectors.
 Horn antenna theory for radiation contd..

• The theory also shows that as the size of a horn antenna increases in
terms of its electrical size, i.e. the number of wavelengths for the
various dimensions, so the phase error increases.

• This has the effect of giving the horn antenna a wider beam width.
j
• In order to provide a narrow beam width a longer horn is required,
i.e. having a smaller angle of flare.

• This enables the phase angle to be kept more constant.

• However the phase error issues mean that horn sizes are practically
limited to around 15 wavelengths otherwise larger sizes would
require a much longer antenna.
 Horn antenna gain
• Theory dictates that as the frequency used by a horn
antenna increases, so does the gain and directivity (beam
width decreases).

• The reason for this is that the aperture of the horn remains
constant in terms of physical dimensions (obviously), but
increases in terms of the number
j of wavelengths, i.e. it is
electrically larger.

• As antennas tend to have higher gain levels as they

become larger, so it can intuitively be seen that the gain
and directivity of the horn antenna will increase with
frequency.
 Horn antenna theory: flare vs gain
• The angle of the flare on the horn antenna has a marked effect on the
gain and beam-width. The actual mathematical theory for this is
very involved and as a result they are not detailed here.

• The gain of the horn antenna will varies with frequency and also the
angle of the flare of the horn itself.

• Without delving deep into horn antenna theory and mathematics, it

j
can be imagined that there is an optimum flare angle.

• The theory shows that there are two areas where the impedance
changes abruptly: the mouth of the horn antenna, and the point
where the sides begin to flare outwards.

• It is possible to gain an understanding of the operation of the horn

by looking at the two extremes where the angle of flare is 0° and 90°
and at the case between the two extremes.
 Horn antenna theory: flare vs gain contd..
• 0° This form of horn might be considered a narrow horn. These
antennas have small levels of gain because the antenna appears like an
open ended waveguide, and there is little conditioning of the radiated
beam as the horn antenna flares out.
• Increasing angles: As the flare angle is increased, the reflection at the
mouth decreases rapidly and as a result the gain of the horn antenna
increases.
Theory also states that the amount j of reflection at the point of the
antenna where the sides start to flare drops, and this also results in an
increase in the level of gain.
• 90° In contrast, for horn antennas with wide angles, it is found that
most of the reflection occurs at the area of the horn where the antenna
sides flare out, but again the horn antenna gain is low because the throat
approximates to an open ended waveguide.

In view of this there is an optimum horn flare for given requirements.

Text Books:
1. Constantine A. Balanis, “Antenna Theory: Analysis
and Design”, 4th Edition, John Wiley, 2016.
2. Edward C. Jordan and Kenneth G. Balmain,
“Electromagnetic Waves and Radiating Systems”,
2nd Edition, PHI,2001.
Suggested Readings:
1. John D. Krauss, Ronald J. Marhefka& Ahmad S.
Khan, “Antennas and Wave Propagation”,
4thEdition, TMH, 2010.
2. 2. Dennis Roody and John Coolen, “Electronic
Communications”, 4th Edition, Prentice Hall, 2008.
Prof. N. V. K. Rao 32
Prof. N. V. K. Rao 33