SKA Correlator Input Data Rate

Introduction One of the major costs in the SKA is data transport from the antenna to the central beamformer or correlator. In this memo formulae are derived that allow all the SKA concepts to be compared. It is found that data rate per steradian does not depend on the size of the antenna. For a given performance factors that do affect the data rate are Tsys, wavelength, sensitivity, the use of mosaicing and beamforming with arrays of antennas.