8.2 – 110 GHz, Prime Focus Antennas for Satcom

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Why Choose Mi-Wave for SatCom Prime Focus Antennas

Mi-Wave is a trusted manufacturer of microwave and millimeter-wave antenna systems supporting satellite communication networks worldwide. Our 202 and 203 Series Prime Focus Antennas are engineered to meet the performance and reliability requirements of SatCom gateways, feeder links, and ground station infrastructure.

Material Options for SatCom Environments

• 202 Series (Aluminum Reflectors):
  Ideal for controlled or fixed installations where lightweight construction, tight surface tolerances, and high electrical conductivity are required for high-frequency SatCom performance.

• 203 Series (Fiberglass Reflectors):
  Designed for outdoor and harsh environments, offering enhanced durability, corrosion resistance, and structural scalability for larger reflector diameters.

SatCom-Driven Engineering

Each antenna is designed with careful attention to beam symmetry, sidelobe control, polarization stability, and feed alignment, ensuring consistent performance across satellite frequency bands.

Custom SatCom Solutions

Mi-Wave offers custom prime focus antenna configurations for SatCom systems, including:

• Ka-, Q-, and V-Band frequency plans

• Specific gain and beamwidth targets

• WR waveguide interface selection

• Polarization requirements

• Mechanical and mounting adaptations for gateway installations

What Prime Focus Antennas Do for SatCom Systems

Prime focus antennas are high-gain directional reflector antennas used in satellite communications (SatCom) to efficiently transmit and receive RF energy between ground-based terminals and orbiting satellites. These antennas concentrate RF energy by reflecting signals from a parabolic dish toward a feed positioned at the geometric prime focus of the reflector.

This antenna architecture produces a narrow beamwidth, high directivity, and symmetrical radiation pattern, making prime focus antennas well suited for long-range satellite uplinks, downlinks, and feeder links where precise beam control and high link margin are required.

In SatCom systems operating at microwave and millimeter-wave frequencies, prime focus antennas are used to maximize aperture efficiency and improve overall link performance. By focusing electromagnetic energy into a tightly controlled main lobe while minimizing spillover and pattern distortion, these antennas deliver improved gain, pointing accuracy, and repeatable performance, which are critical for gateway terminals, ground stations, and high-throughput satellite networks.

SatCom Frequency Coverage and Waveguide Interfaces

Mi-Wave prime focus antennas support satellite communication frequencies typically ranging from 8.2 GHz to 110 GHz, with extended capability depending on reflector diameter, surface accuracy, and feed configuration. This range supports key SatCom bands used in both legacy and next-generation satellite systems.

These antennas are compatible with standard rectangular waveguide (WR) interfaces, allowing seamless integration into SatCom RF chains, including high-power amplifiers, LNAs, up-converters, down-converters, and monitoring equipment. Supported waveguide sizes and bands include:

• WR-90 | 8.2–12.4 GHz | X-Band

• WR-62 | 12.4–18.0 GHz | Ku-Band

• WR-42 | 18.0–26.5 GHz | K-Band

• WR-28 | 26.5–40.0 GHz | Ka-Band

• WR-22 | 33.0–50.0 GHz | Q-Band

• WR-15 | 50.0–75.0 GHz | V-Band

• WR-10 | 75.0–110.0 GHz | W-Band

This broad compatibility enables prime focus antennas to integrate directly into high-frequency SatCom ground infrastructure without additional interface complexity.

Why Prime Focus Matters in Satellite Communications

Because the feed is positioned precisely at the prime focus of the parabolic reflector, this antenna design provides several performance advantages that are especially important in SatCom applications:

• High gain and narrow beamwidth to support long-distance satellite uplink and downlink paths

• Symmetrical radiation patterns for predictable gateway and ground station performance

• Stable polarization characteristics across Ka-, Q-, and V-Band operating ranges

• Consistent electrical performance across multiple frequencies and WR waveguide sizes

These characteristics make prime focus antennas a reliable solution for satellite gateway terminals, feeder links, point-to-point satellite communication systems, and SatCom test, measurement, and system validation environments.