System integration and radiation pattern measurements of a phased array antenna employing an integrated photonic beamformer for radio astronomy applications

In this paper we describe the system integration and the experimental demonstration of a photonically beamformed four-element receiving array antenna for radio astronomy applications. To our knowledge, the work described here is the first demonstration of the squint-free, continuously tunable beamsteering capability offered by an integrated photonic beamformer based on optical ring resonator true-time-delay units, with measured radiation patterns. The integrated beamformer is realized in a low loss, complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) compatible optical waveguide technology. The measurements show a wideband, continuous beamsteering operation over a steering angle of 23.5 degrees and an instantaneous bandwidth of 500 MHz limited only by the measurement setup.