Over-the-air Array Calibration of mmWave Phased Array in Beam-steering Mode Based on Measured Complex Signals

Accurate knowledge of initial complex excitation coefficients for phased-array elements is essential to ensure accurate array performance. In the literature, many array calibration algorithms have been proposed for this purpose, which generally requires customized phase setting for individual phase shifters connected to array elements. In this article, a new array calibration method is proposed for phased array operating in beam-steering mode only, that is, phase shifts of elements are only simultaneously set according to the beam-steering directions, and therefore, there is no need for dedicated individual element phase tuning. The proposed method requires a minimum number of complex-signal measurements in principle, which enables fast measurement. Furthermore, it is found that the performance of the proposed method is determined by the beam-steering matrix, whose condition number is mainly ruled by the beam-steering angle interval. The proposed method is numerically simulated and experimentally validated in a millimeter-wave (mmWave) phased-array antenna-in-package (AiP) platform at 28 GHz. The proposed method presents good agreement with the well-known rotating element electric field vector (REV) array calibration method, with an amplitude error and phase error within ±0.5 dB and ±5°, respectively. Furthermore, the reconstructed array pattern with the proposed method offers excellent match with the measured array pattern.