APPROXIMATE FORMULAS FOR CALCULATING THE RADIATION-PATTERNS OF PLANE FAN DIPOLES

Approximate methods of calculating radiation patterns play an importan t role in antenna theory. They are widely used in practical calculatio ns and also for investigating the main features of how the radiation p roperties depend on the antenna construction. Methods based on replaci ng the exact distribution of the radiating current by approximate ones are well known in practice for all types of antennas. Plane antennas constructed on the self-complimentary principle are an exception to th is. These antennas, with triangular plane dipoles, forming an array of the ''checkerboard'' type are widely used in the decimeter band. To r educe the weight and sail-effect, the arms of the dipoles are construc ted in the form of diverging beams of conductors (plane fan dipoles, s ee Fig. 1). In this paper we derive approximate formulas for calculati ng the radiation patterns of such dipoles.