Array Thinning by Hybrid Quantum-Classical Evolutionary Optimization

Antenna arrays are used in almost all fields of telecommunications and applied electromagnetics due to their versatility and fabrication simplicity with respect to equivalently large aperture antennas. One common technique used when antenna arrays have to be further simplified while preserving its radiation characteristics is its thinning. This paper presents the application of a hybrid quantum-classical binary evolutionary optimization algorithm to tackle the problem of designing a thinned array. It is found that this hybrid algorithm surpasses the performance of its classical counterpart in this application. The improved performance is observed in convergence speed, repeatability and resistance to stagnation in local minima.