Optimal Near-Field Synthesis of Shaped Patterns Thorugh Realistic Arrays

We present a new method for the fast design of I-n array antennas composed of realistic elements, including mutual coupling and mounting platform effects, such to fulfill an arbitrary power mask in the near field region. The technique represents the extension of the well-known spectral factorization method, originally developed in the far-field case and relying to the exploitation of the array factor, to near-field scenarios involving realistic antennas. The proposed approach includes a feasibility criterion allowing to a-priori ascertain whether or not an array of given size can generate a field fulfilling the assigned mask and, in the affirmative case, allows finding a number of different excitations sets all corresponding to the sought power pattern.