An integrated wideband multifunctional antenna using a microstrip patch with two U-slots

In this paper a multifunctional microstrip antenna is designed, fabricated and experimentally verified for operation in AWS, GSM, WiMAX and WLAN bands. This microstrip patch antenna has two U-shaped slots to achieve the dual wideband operation required to meet these specifications. The dimensions and locations of the U-slots are designed appropriately. The thick substrate used here helps in integrating the antenna with the existing aircraft panel material while achieving wide bandwidths. Experimental results of this single feed antenna indicate that it meets all current requirements for in-cabin wireless communication needs.

A Novel Quad-Polarization Agile Patch Antenna

In this communication we present a novel polarization-agile microstrip antenna design. To dynamically change the polarization state, the radiating patch is fed by a tunable quasi-lumped coupler. The whole structure can be dynamically altered to radiate electromagnetic waves with vertical linear, horizontal linear, right-handed circular or left-handed circular polarization simply by changing the operating mode of the quasi-lumped coupler. Due to its topology the coupler is simply reconfigured by switching the bias of two varactor diodes via a very simple DC bias circuitry: no additional capacitors or inductors are required. A prototype is fabricated with a 0.762-mm-thick upper layer substrate for the radiating element and a 0.130-mm-thick layer substrate for the coupler circuit, both with the same dielectric material relative permittivity of 2.22. The simulated and measured scattering parameters, the axial ratio in circular radiation-mode and the cross-polarization level in linear mode, the gain and the radiation patterns are presented. The agile polarization capabilities of this new antenna, as demonstrated in this communication, underscore its suitability for modern wireless communications in a multi-path propagation environment.

V-band 57-65 GHz receiver

A simple V-band radio IQ receiver architecture based around a six-port monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) is presented. The receiver assembly is designed to cover the 57-65 GHz broadband wireless communication system frequency allocation. The receiver that has an integral 10 dB microstrip antenna consumes 120 mW of dc power and occupies an area of 23 mm x 16 mm. The receiver can be used in heterodyne or in homodyne mode and has the capacity to demodulate quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM), binary phase shift keying (BPSK)/quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK)/offset quadrature phase shift keying (OQPSK). At 60 GHz the receiver can operate over 10 m range for transmitter effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP) of 20 dBm.

A double U-slot patch antenna with dual wideband characteristics

Microstrip patch antennas are strong candidates for use in many wireless communications applications. This paper proposes the use of a patch antenna with two U-shaped slots to achieve dual band operation. A thick substrate helps broaden the individual bandwidths. The antenna is designed based on extensive IE3D simulation studies. A prototype antenna is fabricated and experimentally verified for the required performance.

1D-Leaky Wave Antenna Employing Parallel-Plate Waveguide Loaded With PRS and HIS

A new type of one-dimensional leaky-wave antenna (LWA) with independent control of the beam-pointing angle and beamwidth is presented. The antenna is based on a simple structure composed of a bulk parallel-plate waveguide (PPW) loaded with two printed circuit boards (PCBs), each one consisting of an array of printed dipoles. One PCB acts as a partially reflective surface (PRS), and the other grounded PCB behaves as a high impedance surface (HIS). It is shown that an independent control of the leaky-mode phase and leakage rate can be achieved by changing the lengths of the PRS and HIS dipoles, thus resulting in a flexible adjustment of the LWA pointing direction and directivity. The leaky-mode dispersion curves are obtained with a simple Transverse Equivalent Network (TEN), and they are validated with three-dimensional full-wave simulations. Experimental results on fabricated prototypes operating at 15 GHz are reported, demonstrating the versatile and independent control of the LWA performance by changing the PRS and HIS parameters.

SIW slot antenna for E-band communications

The paper proposes novel substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) slot antenna for E-band communications. The antenna is designed at a two-layer low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) substrate in 71-76 GHz frequency band. The proposed antenna demonstrates a gain better than 11.3 dBi and efficiency of 85% and can be used as a standalone antenna or as an element of a larger array.

Low-profile resonant cavity antenna with artificial magnetic conductor ground plane

A planar artificial magnetic conductor (AMC) ground plane is proposed as a means to reduce the profile of a highly directive resonant cavity antenna. The structure is formed by a printed microstrip patch antenna and a superimposed partially reflective surface. The antenna profile is reduced to approximately half by virtue of employing the AMC ground plane. A ray theory model is used to qualitatively describe the functioning of the antenna and theoretically predict the existence of quarter wavelength resonant cavities.

Planar High-Gain WLAN PCB Antenna

A simple design for a low-profile high-gain planar antenna has been presented in the letter. The antenna has the realized gain between 9 and 11 dBi and the return loss better than 10 dB over the 5.6-6.3-GHz frequency band, i.e. 11% bandwidth. A numerical study highlighting effects of key geometrical parameters on the gain and return loss of the antenna has been performed. It has been shown as well that the presented antenna occupies area 20% smaller than a conventional microstrip patch antenna array with a similar gain.