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Next: SSB versus DSB Performance Up: MMA Memo 170 System Previous: Receiver Performance Goals

The Dual-Polarization Advantage

Although we assume this is widely recognized, we note here that the best way to improve system performance at a given site with a given telescope and receiver system is to have orthogonal polarization channels. Dual polarizations of equal sensitivity always reduce observing time by a factor of 2 regardless of observing conditions. Doing SSB rather than DSB measurements offers this much improvement only at large values of sky noise.



Jeff Mangum