Variable Thickness Airborne Radome Design Considering Thickness Profile Control and Additional Electromagnetic Performance

Variable thickness design, effective in improving the electromagnetic (EM) performance of streamlined airborne radomes, has the deficiency of potential difficulties in the manufacturing process as the thickness profile usually tends to vary dramatically within the entire range of the radome. Boresight error (BSE) and transmission loss (TL) are the two mostly concerned EM performances, whereas other EM performances, such as BSE slope (BSES), sidelobe level (SL), and cross-polarization level (XPL), can also be important in particular applications. In this work, a thickness profile control (TPC) method is presented for variable thickness radome (VTR) design through three parameters, and additional EM performances are considered in the design process. Optimization models are then established for VTR design. Simulation results of a tangent-ogival radome using the 3-D ray tracing method validate the effectiveness of the TPC method and demonstrate the compatibility characteristics of the EM performances and TPC, which enhance the merits of VTR.