Abstract:Spherical multiprobe antenna nearfield measurement system has the advantages of fast test speed and being able to acquire the threedimensional nearfield data of the antenna to be tested. However, multiple probes form multiple channels, and different amplitude and phase characteristics of various channels will affect nearfield measurement accuracy. In order to eliminate the channel inconsistency, mechanical calibration of the multiprobe system is performed first, which reduces the angle and position errors of the probe. Then electrical calibration is performed through measuring the radiation signal from the center of sphere to each probe. Next, the influence of amplitude and phase errors caused by system errors and environment factors on the extrapolation of farfield radiation pattern from nearfield data is simulated and analyzed. A semispherical multiprobe antenna nearfield measurement system was built, and verification experiment was conducted. The results indicate the effectiveness of mechanical calibration and electrical calibration techniques. The calibrated nearfield data was extrapolated to obtain farfield radiation pattern, and the obtained radiation pattern was compared with the measured farfield radiation pattern. The comparison result verifies influence of amplitude and phase errors on extrapolated farfield radiation pattern.