Compact Superdirective Electric Dipole Array for Far-field Measurement in a Semi-Anechoic Environment

This paper investigates the theory of superdirective arrays with electric dipoles as elements placed over a metallic reflector. A practical design of such antenna array is designed with a primary concern on the antenna compactness while keeping a relatively wide matching bandwidth. This antenna array, contained in a ka = 1.8 Chu sphere electrical radius, shows a maximum directivity of 11.8 dBi at 80 MHz while being matched over a 15.6 % fractional bandwidth. The proposed antenna is a good candidate for far-field measurements in presence of specular reflection inside an anechoic chamber below its minimal working frequency.