| Radio Astronomy allows for astrophysicists and astronomers to observe parts of the Universe outside of the visible spectrum. Within radio astronomy, the 21cm wavelength is a very popular choice for observation. The 21cm wavelength emission/absorption corresponds to transitions of neutral hydrogen electrons in their orbitals and is a very useful wavelength to observe due to the prevalence of neutral hydrogen gas throughout the Universe. However, due to the physical size of wavelengths in the radio spectrum, radio telescopes tend to be very large and therefore very expensive. This thesis uses evolutionary optimization algorithms to optimize the much cheaper and rugged micro-patch antennas in a phased array. The evolutionary algorithm optimizes the geometry of the micro-patch antenna and 2-D phased array parameters that will culminate in a single radio telescope. The micropatch antenna parameters to be optimized are the geometry of top metal patch, dielectric thickness, dielectric constant, and feed point. The array factor parameters that are optimized are the relative weights for each array element and their relative periodic spacing. |
