A ka‐band receiving terminal for measuring rocsat‐1 ECP beacon signals

Abstract The design, integration, test and measurement results of a Kaband receiving terminal developed by NTU (National Taiwan University) to receive the ROCSAT‐1 ECP (experimental communication payload) down‐link 19.5 GHz beacon signals are described in this paper. The developed Ka‐band receiving terminal has a computer controlled reflector antenna to receive the ECP beacon signal, and a Ka‐band receiver to amplify and down convert the 19.5 GHz beacon signal to 150 MHz IF signal, then a HP8562A spectrum analyzer to detect the IF output signal power level. The dynamic range and sensitivity of the developed receiving terminal are about 30 dB and ‐170 dBm, respectively. This receiving terminal is demonstrated to be the first one to successfully receive the ROCSAT‐1 ECP signals. The development of this receiving terminal gives not only a cost‐effective tool for the ROCSAT‐1 ECP experiments, but also a reference for the developing ROCSAT series X‐band or L‐band receiving terminals in the future.