Hybrid Sparse Linear Array Synthesis Applied to Phased Antenna Arrays

In this letter, a new hybrid technique to synthesize sparse linear arrays is proposed. This technique is based on the combination of two methods. As a first method, a deterministic synthesis algorithm is used to resolve the nonuniform amplitude excitations and the antenna element locations. Then, the second method is an iterative optimization scheme that computes the phase of the excitation currents. This approach is proven valid to properly match diverse beam patterns (narrow-beam, flat-top, and square-cosecant) with sparse linear arrays. Three numerical experiments are reported that show the performance of the proposed technique and compare it to other outstanding methods available in the literature.