Accurate Analysis of the Electrical Performance of Hypersonic Vehicle Radomes under Thermo-mechanical Effects

Under extreme flight conditions, radomes applied to hypersonic vehicles must simultaneously endure intense aerodynamic heating and complex mechanical loads, leading to changes in material properties and structural configuration that significantly affect antenna electrical performance. This investigation presents an in-depth analysis of radome electrical performance under thermo-mechanical effects and proposes a precise integrated electrical performance analysis methodology for radome-antenna systems based on the finite element method. The approach establishes a coupled radome-antenna model through finite element analysis while considering material property variations induced by thermo-mechanical coupling. Based on temperature distribution characteristics obtained from finite element analysis, the radome undergoes layered processing where electrical parameter distributions are established layer by layer according to temperature-dependent material characteristics, providing a more realistic representation of radome electrical performance variations under high-temperature conditions. The proposed modeling methodology is validated through antenna radiation analysis under typical operating frequency bands, demonstrating excellent agreement with experimental observations and providing crucial insights for next-generation aerospace system design optimization.