SBIR-STTR Award

This proposal presents a feasibility study and design of a small high temperature superconducting (HTS) antenna employing SQUIDs (Superconducting Quantum Interference Devices) technology that serve to target origination of RF energy and therefore provide accurate direction finding in a dense interference environment. The technical objectives are to design a HTS antenna that employs Josephson Junction SQUIDs. 3 devices will be formulated under this proposal for accomplishing the objective of locating RF emanation and directional finding operation in a dense environment scenario. These devices are: 1. Single SQUID Magnetometer, 2. Multiple SQUID Magnetometer, and 3. Small HTS SQUID Antenna.The HTS-SQUID antenna design concept is to use three co-located loops orthogonal superconductor loop antennas with a common center point, each connected to suitable signal processors. These processors would analyze and calculate the signals received by each of the three antennas. By measuring Hx, Hy and Hz of an incoming signal, one can deduce the amplitude and direction of arrival of the incoming signal. The concept is that the three orthogonal loops would occupy a much smaller volume, in the range of several cm. on each edge and thus could be deployed on an airborne platform.

Keywords:
Superconducting Antenna, Communication Surveillance, High Temperature Superconductivity, Squid, Magnetometer, Directional Finding Antenna.

This Phase II effort proposes to design and develop a physically small patch and loop antenna made with high temperature superconducting (HTS) and multiferroic composite (MFC) materials for high frequency (HF) and directional finding (DF) applications. These antennas will harness and demonstrate the use of cryogenically cooled superconductive Josephson Junction (JJ) technology. Several novel thin film process techniques will also be presented in the fabrication of raw materials for these antennas. The resulting antennas will be miniaturized, up to 100X less the size of a conventional antenna. Frequency tuning for this antenna system will be fast, down to the range of mini-seconds, or faster. Bandwidth of these antennas is wide, down to the 3MHz. range. The arrays of HTS components are extremely sensitive magnetometers and would provide increased output voltage and dynamic range. They would also mitigate the variation in critical junction currents. MFC materials would also make excellent small antennas as they provide the mechanical resonance that increase the cross coupling effect between ferromagnetism and ferroelectricity. Antennas made from MFC material has an added desirable feature of tuning by voltage.

Keywords:
Multiferroics, Superconductors, Physically Small Antennas, Communication, Directional Finding.