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In recent years there has been a rapid increase in the number of wireless devices for both commercial and defense applications. Such unprecedented demand has increased device cost and complexity and also added a strain on the spectrum utilization of wireless communication systems. This thesis addresses these issues, from an antenna system perspective, by developing new techniques to dynamically optimize adaptive beamforming arrays for improved anti-jamming and reliability. Available frequency spectrum is a scarce resource, and therefor e increased interference will occur as the wireless spectrum saturates. To mitig ate unintentional interference, or intentional interference from a jamming source, antenna arrays are used to focus electromagnetic energy on a signal of interest while simultaneously minimizing radio frequency energy in directions of interfering signals. The reliability of such arrays, especially in commercial satellite and defense applications, can be addressed by hardware redundancy, but at the expense of increased volume, mass as well as component and design cost. This thesis proposes the development of new models and optimization algorithms to dynamically adapt beamforming arrays to mitigate interference and increase hardware reliability. The contributions of this research are as follows. First, analytical models are developed and experimental results show that small antenna arrays can thwart interference using dynamically applied stochastic algorithms. This type of insitu optimization, with an algorithm dynamically optimizing a beamformer to thwart interference sources with unknown positions, inside of an anechoic chamber has not been done before to our knowledge. Second, it is shown that these algorithms can recover from hardware failures and localized faults in the array. Experiments were performed with a proof-of-concept four-antenna array. This is the first hardware demonstration showing an antenna array with live hardware fault recovery that is adapted by stochastic algorithms in an anechoic chamber. We also compare multiple stochastic algorithms in performing both anti-jamming and hardware fault recovery. Third, we show that stochastic algorithms can be used to continuously track and mitigate interfering signals that continuously move in an additive white Gaussian noise wireless channel.

This body of work as whole has the theme of using floating-gates and reconfigurable systems to explore and implement non-traditional computing solutions to difficult problems. Various computational methodologies are used simultaneously to solve problems by mapping pieces of them to the appropriate type of computer. There exists no systematic approach to simultaneously apply analog, digital, and neuromorphic techniques to solving general problems. Typically, this is a very difficult task, and one that few attempt to undertake. However, when done right, solutions can be found with orders-of-magnitude improvement over existing solutions restricted to using only one type computational domain. To that end, I have helped build large and complicated reconfigurable systems (and software tools for helping to use these systems) capable of implementing solutions to problems in all three of those domains simultaneously. These systems are used to explore and implement these cross domain solutions to difficult problems. The earlier work was involved with simply applying floating-gate technology to improving the building blocks of digital systems. Through that early work a new logic family built from floating-gate transistors was discovered, a Logical Effort compatible power analysis technique was developed, and low power floating-gate based FPGA was implemented. This work was then merged with existing research in the group involving solving problems using reconfigurable analog, and neuromorphic techniques. Thus converging on the mentioned systems that allow one to solve problems using techniques from all three domains: analog, neuromorphic, and digital.

The optics and photonics development is currently driven towards nanometer scales. However, diffraction imposes challenges for this development because it prevents confinement of light below a physical limit, commonly known as the diffraction limit. Several implications of the diffraction limit include that conventional optical microscopes are unable to resolve objects smaller than 250nm, and photonic circuits have a physical dimension on the order of the wavelength. Metals at optical frequencies display collective electron oscillations when excited by photon energy, giving rise to the surface plasmon modes with subdiffractional modal profile at metal-dielectric interfaces. Therefore, metallo-dielectric structures are promising candidates for alleviating the obstacles due to diffraction. This thesis investigates a particular branch of plasmonic structures, namely plasmonic antennas, for the purpose of optical imaging and sensing applications. Plasmonic antennas are known for their ability of dramatic near-field enhancement, as well as effective coupling of free-space radiation with localized energy. Such properties are demonstrated in this thesis through two particular applications. The first one is to utilize the interference of evanescent waves from an array of antennas to achieve near-field subdiffraction focusing, also known as superfocusing, in both one and two dimensions. Such designs could alleviate the tradeoffs in the current near-field scanning optical microscopy by improving the signal throughput and extending the imaging distance. The second application is to achieve more efficient radiation from single-emitters through coupling to a highly directive leaky-wave antenna. In this case, the leaky-wave antenna demonstrates the ability of enhancing the directivity over a very wide spectrum.

The optics and photonics development is currently driven towards nanometer scales. However, diffraction imposes challenges for this development because it prevents confinement of light below a physical limit, commonly known as the diffraction limit. Several implications of the diffraction limit include that conventional optical microscopes are unable to resolve objects smaller than 250nm, and photonic circuits have a physical dimension on the order of the wavelength. Metals at optical frequencies display collective electron oscillations when excited by photon energy, giving rise to the surface plasmon modes with subdiffractional modal profile at metal-dielectric interfaces. Therefore, metallo-dielectric structures are promising candidates for alleviating the obstacles due to diffraction. This thesis investigates a particular branch of plasmonic structures, namely plasmonic antennas, for the purpose of optical imaging and sensing applications. Plasmonic antennas are known for their ability of dramatic near-field enhancement, as well as effective coupling of free-space radiation with localized energy. Such properties are demonstrated in this thesis through two particular applications. The first one is to utilize the interference of evanescent waves from an array of antennas to achieve near-field subdiffraction focusing, also known as superfocusing, in both one and two dimensions. Such designs could alleviate the tradeoffs in the current near-field scanning optical microscopy by improving the signal throughput and extending the imaging distance. The second application is to achieve more efficient radiation from single-emitters through coupling to a highly directive leaky-wave antenna. In this case, the leaky-wave antenna demonstrates the ability of enhancing the directivity over a very wide spectrum.

Aeroacoustic emissions were identified as a primary concern in the public acceptance of wind turbines. A review of literature involving sound localization was undertaken and led to the design of two microphone arrays to identify acoustic sources. A small-scale array composed of 27 sensors was produced with the intention of improving the quality of sound measurements over those made by a single microphone in a small, closed-loop wind tunnel. A large-scale array containing 30 microphones was also implemented to allow for measurements of aeroacoustic emissions from airfoils and rotating wind turbines. To minimize cost and pursue alternative sensor technologies, microelectromechanical microphones were selected for the array sensors and assembled into the arrays on printed circuit boards. Characterization of the microphones was completed using a combination of calibration techniques, primarily in a plane wave tube. Array response to known sources was quantified by analyzing source maps with respect to source location accuracy, beamwidth, and root mean square error. Multiple sources and rotating sources were tested to assess array performance. Following validation with known sources, wind tunnel testing of a 600 watt wind turbine was performed at freestream speeds of 2.5 m/s, 3.5 m/s, 4.5 m/s, and to 5.5 m/s. Significant aeroacoustic emissions were noted from the turbine in the 4.5 m/s and 5.5 m/s cases, with an increase of up to 12 dB over background levels. Source maps from the 5.5 m/s tests revealed that the primary location of aeroacoustic emissions was near the outer radii of the rotor, but not at the tip, and generally moved radially outward with increasing frequency. The azimuthal location of the greatest sound pressure levels was typically found to be between 120º and 130º measured counterclockwise from the upward vertical, coinciding with the predicted location of greatest emissions provided by an analytical model based on dipole directivity and convective amplification. Analysis of the acoustic spectra, turbine operating characteristics, and previous literature suggested that the sound emissions emanated from the trailing edge of the blades.

Large phased array antennas are widely used in many military and commercial applications. The analysis of large arrays containing many antenna or frequency-selective (FSS) surface elements is inefficient or intractable when brute force numerical methods are used. For the efficient analysis of such structures hybrid methods (analytic and numerical, numerical and numerical) can be used. In this thesis, a hybrid method combining the uniform geometrical theory of diffraction (UTD) and the moment method (MoM) used for the analysis of large, finite arrays is modified for the efficient yet accurate analysis of large printed dipole arrays. In the present hybrid UTD-MoM approach, the number of unknowns to be solved is drastically reduced as compared to the conventional MoM approach, which provides a great efficiency on the computational cost. This extreme reduction in the number of MoM unknowns is carried out by introducing a few UTD-ray type global basis functions for the unknown array element currents. In this study, this hybrid UTD-MoM method is applied to the analysis of a finite, planar periodic array of printed dipoles on a grounded dielectric substrate. The efficiency and accuracy of this hybrid method are demonstrated with some numerical results.

Thesis (M.S.)--University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 94-96). / xv, 96 leaves, bound ill. 29 cm

Includes bibliographies. / xix, [252] leaves : ill. ; 30 cm. / Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library. / This research addresses probe fed classical rectangular microstrip antenna elements and arrays, that are fabricated on substrate materials with various thicknesses and relative permittivities. Formulae are developed for calculating the patch dimensions, the resonant input resistance, the resonant frequency, the bandwidth and the radiation patterns of elements, as well as the mutual coupling coefficients of arrays. / Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, 1996

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Ohio University, June, 1990. / Title from PDF t.p.