CHAPTER-1

INTRODUCTION

Conventional microstrip antennas in general have a conducting patch printed

on a grounded microwave substrate, and have the attractive features of low profile,
light weight, easy fabrication, and conformability to mounting hosts. However,
microstrip antennas inherently have a narrow bandwidth, and bandwidth enhancement
is usually demanded for practical applications. In addition, applications in present-day
mobile communication systems usually require smaller antenna size in order to meet
the miniaturization requirements of mobile units. Thus, size reduction and bandwidth
enhancement are becoming major design considerations for practical applications of
microstrip antennas. For this reason, studies to achieve compact and broadband
operations of microstrip antennas have greatly increased. Much significant progress in
the design of compact microstrip antennas with broadband, dual-frequency, dual-
polarized, circularly polarized, and gain-enhanced operations have been reported over
the past several years. Compact microstrip antennas have recently received much
attention due to the increasing demand of small antennas for personal
communications equipment. For mobile communication certain specific bands of
frequencies have been allotted. For example: WiMax: 3.2-3.8 GHz, WLAN: 2.4-3.6
GHz, Wi-Fi: 2.4 GHz, Mobile Band: 900MHz-1.8 GHz. Therefore the current
requirement of microstrip antenna includes multiple resonance frequencies by using
the same patch. For achieving microstrip antennas with a reduced size at a fixed
operating frequency, the use of a high permittivity substrate is an effective method;
Recently, it has been demonstrated that loading the microstrip patch with a shorting
pin canal very effectively reduce the required patch size for a fixed operating
frequency.
There are numerous substrates that can be used for the design of microstrip
antennas and their dielectric constants are usually in the range of 2.2 ≤ εr ≤ 12. The
ones that are most desirable for good antenna performance are thick substrates whose
dielectric constant is in the lower end of the range because they provide better
efficiency, larger bandwidth, loosely bound fields for radiation into space, but at the
expense of larger element size.

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 Thin substrates with higher dielectric constants are desirable for microwave
circuitry because they require tightly bound fields to minimize undesired radiation and
coupling, and lead to smaller element sizes, however, because of their greater losses;
they are less efficient and have relatively smaller bandwidths. Since microstrip
antennas are often integrated with other microwave circuitry, a compromise has to be
reached between good antenna performance and circuit design. Often microstrip
antennas are also referred to as patch antennas. The radiating elements and the feed
lines are usually photo etched on the dielectric substrate. The radiating patch may be
square, rectangular, thin strip (dipole), circular, elliptical, triangular, or any other
configuration. Square, rectangular, dipole (strip), and circular are the most common
because of ease of analysis and fabrication, and their attractive radiation
characteristics, especially low cross-polarization radiation. Microstrip dipoles are
attractive because they inherently possess a large bandwidth and occupy less space,
which makes them attractive for arrays. Linear and circular polarizations can be
achieved with either single elements or arrays of microstrip antennas. Arrays of
microstrip elements, with single or multiple feeds may also be used to introduce
scanning capabilities and achieve greater directivities.
In recent years demand for small antennas on wireless communication has
increased interest in compact microstrip antenna design among microwaves and
wireless engineers. To support the high mobility necessity for a wireless
telecommunication device, a small and light weight antenna is likely to be preferred.
For this purpose Compact Microstrip antenna is one of the most suitable applications.
The development of antenna for wireless communication also requires an antenna
with more than one operating frequency. This is due to many reasons, mainly because
there are various wireless communication systems and many telecommunication
operators using various frequencies. Therefore one antenna that has multiband
characteristic is more desirable than having one antenna for each frequency band. To
reduce the size of the antenna one of the effective techniques is cutting slot in proper
position on the microstrip patch. Compact microstrip antenna is a topic of intensive
research in recent years because of increasing demand for small antennas used in
various types of communications including mobile communication. The size of the
antenna may be effectively reduced by cutting rectangular slots on printed antennas.

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1.1 PTFE SUBSTRATE

Different values of dielectric constant are possible for PTFE substrate.

Basically, the values of dielectric constant for PTFE substrate are 2.2 and 4.4 which
are readily available.
PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene) based substrates are used to provide a
laminate with a dielectric constant that is relatively low. While PTFE has very good
electrical properties, other properties need to be well understood for several
considerations. The design and fabrication of microstrip patch antennas are easily
possible on PTFE substrate. For MoM based transmission line analysis, we can
choose any dimensions for width (W) and Length (L).
A patch antenna is a narrowband, wide-beam antenna fabricated by etching the
antenna element pattern in metal trace bonded to an insulating dielectric substrate,
such as a printed circuit board, with a continuous metal layer bonded to the opposite
side of the substrate which forms a ground plane.
1.2 OBJECTIVES OF WORK & APPLICATIONS
The objective of my work is to obtain small size, dual band & multiple
resonance frequency by patch antennas. This has been achieved by cutting various
types of rectangular and circular slots. These various types of micro strip antennas are
designed with the help of IE3D, software based on Method-of-Moment (MoM). We
have also been able to design some micro strip antennas which are operating at
multiple frequencies with size reduction. In addition, we designed some dual band
antennas for WLAN applications.
1.3 ANTENNA FUNDAMENTALS
1.3.1 Introduction to Antennas
Antennas are metallic structures designed for radiating and receiving
electromagnetic energy. An antenna acts as a transitional structure between the
guiding device (e.g. waveguide, transmission line) and the free space. The official
IEEE definition of an antenna as given by Stutzman and Thiele follows the concept:
“That part of a transmitting or receiving system that is designed to radiate or
receive electromagnetic waves”.

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1.3.2 Antenna Radiation

In order to know how an antenna radiates, let us first consider how radiation
occurs. A conducting wire radiates mainly because of time-varying current or an
acceleration (or deceleration) of charge.
An antenna radiates by changing the flow of current inside a conduction wire.
There are two ways to do this.
1. By time-varying (change of velocity, acceleration and/or de-acceleration) the
current in a straight wire, the current will create a flow making the antenna radiate. If
there is no motion of flow or if the flow of current is uniform, the straight wire will
not radiate.
2. If we bend the wire, even with uniform velocity, the curve along the wire will
create acceleration in the current flow and the wire will therefore radiate.
If the charge is oscillating with time, the radiation will also occur even along a
straight wire.The radiation from an antenna can be explained with the help of Figure
1.1 which shows a voltage source connected to a two conductor transmission line.
When a sinusoidal voltage is applied across the transmission line, an electric field is
created which is sinusoidal in nature and this result in the creation of electric lines of
force which are tangential to the electric field. The magnitude of the electric field is
indicated by the bunching of the electric lines of force.

Source Transmission Line Antenna Free space wave

Figure 1.1: Radiation from an Antenna

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 Due to the time varying electric and magnetic fields, electromagnetic waves
are created and these travel between the conductors. As these waves approach open
space, free space waves are formed by connecting the open ends of the electric lines.
Since the sinusoidal source continuously creates the electric disturbance,
electromagnetic waves are created continuously Source Transmission Line Antenna
Free space wave. Inside the transmission line and the antenna, the electromagnetic
waves are sustained due to the charges, but as soon as they enter the free space, they
form closed loops and are radiated.
1.4 BASICS OF A TRANSMISSION LINE

1.4.1Transmission Line

To connect my antenna to a certain utility (or application) I need a transmission

line. In figure 2.2 a two-port transmission line is shown (earlier described as the two
conducting wires).

Figure 1.2: Two-Port Transmission Line

Transmission lines are measured in ohms and are described as Zo, the
characteristic impedance. Zo varies in value depending on what transmission line is
used. In a coaxial cable the transmission line is standardized to either 50Ω, which is
used in most antenna applications, or 75Ω for use in satellite communication or very
high frequency applications. Other transmission lines include as twisted or untwisted
pair cables, standardized to 100Ω and 300Ω, for use in radio communication.
The purpose of a transmission line is to transfer power from one end (Port A)
to another end (Port B) without any loss, as we want all generated power to radiate
from the antenna into the free space. Zo is not ideal and we will therefore have a loss
inside the transmission line in terms of impedance.

Figure 1.3: Transmission Line Elements

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Figure 1.3 shows the elements of a transmission line, also called the “Telegrapher’s
equation”,
Where:
R = transmission line resistance (Ohm).
L = transmission line inductance (Henry).
C = transmission line capacitance (Farad).
G = transmission line conductance (Siemens).
The transmission lines output impedance is calculated from the following formula:

As we can see from the equation above the characteristic impedance changes as
frequency changes.

1.4.2 Matching and Reflection

When sending power from the source to the load, I want as much power to be
absorbed by the load (in this case the load is my antenna), and as little power to be
reflected back to my source. This can be ensured by setting ZL = Z0, which says that
the transmission line is matched.

Figure 1.4: Transmission Line between Source and Load.

As stated earlier, the characteristic impedance Zo changes when change in
frequency occurs. We therefore need to match our load impedance to the operating
frequency of the antenna. When the load impedance is not 100% matched to Zo a
mismatch occurs. This means that some of the power in my forward wave will be
reflected back to the source and will be lost in terms of heat.

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 If the system is totally mismatched the whole power could be reflected back
and eventually end up damaging the source. It is therefore very important to match
your system correctly.
To see how much is reflected back to the source I can calculate the reflection
coefficient Γ.
Z Z
Γ= L− S
Z L + ZS
The reflection coefficient is a complex number (a+jb). If the imaginary part is 0, then
if:
Γ = -1, the line is short-circuited (maximum negative reflection (phase shift of 180°
(or Π)).
Γ = 0, the line is perfectly matched (no reflection).
Γ = 1, the line is open-circuited (maximum positive reflection).
Because the reflection coefficient is complex, it changes with frequency. Instead of
calculating the reflection coefficient a number of times a Smith chart is used for a
graphical expression of the reflection coefficient.

Figure 1.5: Smith Chart

Usually the impedance of the load and source do not match. To ensure a
matched system an additional circuit of lumped components is required. The circuitry
will not be described in this project.
1.4.3 VSWR

Another way to see how much my system is matched, VSWR (Voltage

Standing Wave Ratio) can be used. VSWR is the ratio between the maximum voltage
and minimum voltage in the transmission line, and can be defined as follows:

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 When the system is matched the reflection coefficient approaches 0, while
VSWR approaches to 1.

1.4.4 Return loss

Return loss is the power of the reflected signal in a transmission line. It can be
calculated by the following equation and is given in dB.

The return loss is also stated as the S11 of the S-parameters.

1.4.5 S-parameters

Transmission lines have S-parameters, also called “Scattering parameters”

which refer to RF’s voltage out versus voltage in and are measured in dB. S-
parameters are a complex number but they mostly only refer to the magnitude as you
want to know how much loss or gain you get.
In figure 1.5(a) and table 1.1, S-parameters are described.

Figure 1.5 (a) S-parameters in a Two-Port Network.

When an RF signal enters a port, some fraction of that signal bounces back out
of that port. Some of it “scatters” and exits other ports and might even be amplified.
Some of it disappears as heat or even electromagnetic radiation. S-parameters can be
either be calculated or measured on a network analyzer.

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 Table 1.1: S-parameters
Sr Description
S11 The input ports voltage reflection coefficient.
S12 The reverse voltage gain.

S21 The forward voltage gain.

S22 The output ports voltage reflection coefficient.

1.5 FIELD REGIONS

The field patterns, associated with an antenna, change with distance and are
associated with two types of energy: - radiating energy and reactive energy. Hence,
the space surrounding an antenna can be divided into three regions.

Figure 1.6 Field Regions around an Antenna

The radius of the neatr field is said to be 1 wavelength of the radiated wave.
Figure 1.7 shows a wavelength.

Figure 1.7 Wavelength of a Sine Wave.

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 A wavelength is measured in meters by dividing speed of light over the operating
frequency.
1.5.1 Near Field

The near field is divided into two fields: the reactive near field and the
radiative near field. The reactive near field region covers from R1=0 to R1=/2 or
0.159 x , while the radiative near field covers the remainder from R2=/2 to R2=.
To understand how far the radius is, I will calculate the radiative near field
radius as I know the operating frequency of my Wi-Fi antenna:
It is obvious to understand that I cannot place a computer 0.2 m away from the base
station. Therefore it is important to understand the far field.
• Reactive near-field region: In this region, the reactive field dominates. The
reactive energy oscillates towards and away from the antenna, thus appearing as
reactance. In this region, energy is only stored and no energy is dissipated. The
outermost boundary for this region is at a distance
1.5.2 Far Field:

The far field is said to start from 2λ to infinity. What happens between 1λ and
2λ is called the transition zone. The transition zone has parameters of both the near
field and the far field. Here follows the calculation for 2λ.

The far field generally falls off in amplitude by 1/r. As the sphere is
proportional to r2 the amplitude is therefore the total energy per unit area is
proportional to 1 / r2 in free space. Free space means without interference from other
signals or attenuation from the surroundings of the world. This is the particular pattern
for far field.
It is also called Fraunhofer region. The region beyond R2=2D2/λ is the far
field region. In this region, the reactive fields are absent and only the radiation fields
exist. The angular field distribution is not dependent on the distance from the antenna
in this region and the power density varies as the inverse square of the radial distance
in this region.

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 It is worthy of note that the sphere radiation is a rough calculation as you
typically have different radiation pattern, based on the type of antenna used. Therefore
the sphere is often used as a “rule of thumb”.
1.6 FAR FIELD RADIATION FROM WIRES
The far field radiation from a Hertzian dipole can be conveniently explained
with the help of the spherical co-ordinate system shown in Figure 1.8. The z axis is
taken to be the vertical direction and the xy plane is horizontal.  denotes the
elevation angle and φ denotes the azimuth angle.

Figure 1.8: Spherical co-ordinate system for a hertzian dipole

The xz plane is the elevation plane (φ = 0) or the E-plane which is the plane
containing the electric field vector and the direction of maximum radiation. The xy
plane is the azimuthal plane (θ =π/ 2) or the H-plane which is the plane containing the
magnetic field vector and the direction of maximum radiation.
The far field radiation can be explained with the help of the Hertzian dipole or
infinitesimal dipole which is a piece of straight wire whose length L and diameter are
both very small compared to one wavelength.
A uniform current I (0) am assumed to flow along its length. If this dipole is
placed at the origin along the z axis, then as we can write:

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 2 3
For far field radiation, terms in r and r can be neglected; hence we can
modify the above equations to write:

In all the above equations, the phase term e jωt has been dropped and it is
assumed that all the fields are sinusoid ally varying with time. It is seen from the
above equations that the only non-zero fields are θ E and φ H, and that they are
transverse to each other. The ratio Eθ / Hφ = η, such that the wave impedance is 120π
and the fields are in phase and inversely proportional to r. The directions of E, H and
r form a right handed set such that the Pointing vector is in the r direction and it
indicates the direction of propagation of the electromagnetic wave. Hence the time
average pointing vector given by us can be written as:

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1.7 ANTENNA PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS

The performance of an antenna can be gauged from a number of parameters.

Certain critical parameters are discussed below.
1.7.1 Radiation Pattern

The radiation pattern of an antenna is a plot of the far-field radiation

properties of an antenna as a function of the spatial co-ordinates which are specified
by the elevation angle θ and the azimuth angle φ. More specifically it is a plot of
the power radiated from an antenna per unit solid angle which is nothing but the
radiation intensity. Let us consider the case of an isotropic antenna. An isotropic
antenna is one which radiates equally in all directions. If the total power radiated by
the isotropic antenna is P, then the power is spread over a sphere of radius r, so that
the power density S at this distance in any direction is given as:

An isotropic antenna is not possible to realize in practice and is useful

only for comparison purposes.

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 A more practical type is the directional antenna which radiates more
power in some directions and less power in other directions. A special case of the
directional antenna is the omni directional antenna whose radiation pattern may be
constant in one plane (e.g. E-plane) and varies in an orthogonal plane (e.g. H-plane).
The radiation pattern plot of a generic directional antenna is shown in Figure 1.9.

Figure 1.9: The radiation pattern of generic directional antenna

Figure 1.9 shows the following:
➢ HPBW: The half power beam width (HPBW) can be defined as the angle
subtended by the half power points of the main lobe.
➢ Main Lobe: This is the radiation lobe containing the direction of maximum
radiation.
➢ Minor Lobe: All the lobes other then the main lobe are called the minor lobes.
These lobes represent the radiation in undesired directions. The level of
minor lobes is usually expressed as a ratio of the power density in the lobe in
question to that of the major lobe. This ratio is called as the side lobe level
(expressed in decibels).
➢ Back Lobe: This is the minor lobe diametrically opposite the main lobe.
➢ Side Lobes: These are the minor lobes adjacent to the main lobe and are
separated by various nulls. Side lobes are generally the largest among the minor
lobes.
In most wireless systems, minor lobes are undesired. Hence a good antenna
design should minimize the minor lobes.

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1.7.2 Beam width

The beam width is the angle between the half-power (-3dB) of the peak
effective radiated power. It is usually expressed in degrees and is shown in the
horizontal plane by being displayed in a polar diagram. Figure 2.11 shows a beam
width in a polar diagram.
By a simpler description it can be said that the received signal can be reached
within a beam width-margin of the pointed direction. It can be calculated by the
following equation.

Figure 1.9 (a): A Polar Diagram Showing Beam Width.

Figure 1.9 (b): Radiation pattern; Cartesian and polar diagram

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 1.7.3 Directivity

The directivity of an antenna has been defined by as “the ratio of the

radiation intensity in a given direction from the antenna to the radiation intensity
averaged over all directions”. In other words, the directivity of a non isotropic source
is equal to the ratio of its radiation intensity in a given direction, over that of an
isotropic source.

Directivity is a dimensionless quantity, since it is the ratio of two radiation

intensities. Hence, it is generally expressed in dBi. The directivity of an antenna
can be easily estimated from the radiation pattern of the antenna. An antenna that has
a narrow main lobe would have better directivity, then the one which has a broad
main lobe, hence it is more directivity.

1.7.4 Input Impedance

The input impedance of an antenna is defined by [5] as “the impedance

presented by an antenna at its terminals or the ratio of the voltage to the current at the
pair of terminals or the ratio of the appropriate components of the electric to magnetic
fields at a point”. Hence the impedance of the antenna can be written as:

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 The imaginary part, Xin of the input impedance represents the power stored in
the near field of the antenna. The resistive part, Rin of the input impedance consists of
two components, the radiation resistance Rr and the loss resistance RL. The power
associated with the radiation resistance is the power actually radiated by the antenna,
while the power dissipated in the loss resistance is lost as heat in the antenna itself due
to dielectric or conducting losses.
Rin of the input impedance of an antenna can be divided into radiation and loss
resistances.
Rin =Rr +RL
Where,
Rr is the radiation resistance.
RL is the loss resistance.
Figure 1.10 shows an equivalent circuit of an antenna.

Figure 1.10: Antenna equivalent circuit.

The radiation resistance is a parameter determined by the shape, size, and type
of the antenna, but not by the material. The power associated with the radiation
resistance is the power actually radiated by the antenna while the power dissipated in
the loss resistance is lost as heat in the antenna itself due to dielectric or conducting
losses. The imaginary part is causing the radiator to act similarly to lumped
components, such as coils and capacitors.

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1.7.5 Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR)

Figure 1.11: Equivalent circuit of transmitting antenna

In order for the antenna to operate efficiently, maximum transfer of power
must take place between the transmitter and the antenna. Maximum power transfer
can take place only when the impedance of the antenna (in Z) is matched to that of the
transmitter (S Z). According to the maximum power transfer theorem, maximum
power can be transferred only if the impedance of the transmitter is a complex
conjugate of the impedance of the antenna under consideration and vice-versa. Thus,
the condition for matching is:

If the condition for matching is not satisfied, then some of the power maybe
reflected back and this leads to the creation of standing waves, which can be
characterized by a parameter called as the Voltage St anding Wave Ratio (VSWR).
The VSWR is given by Makarov [6] as:

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 The VSWR is basically a measure of the impedance mismatch between the
transmitter and the antenna. The higher the VSWR, the greater is the mismatch. The
minimum VSWR which corresponds to a perfect match is unity. A practical antenna
design should have an input impedance of either 50 Ω or 75 Ω since most radio
equipment is built for this impedance.

1.7.6 Return Loss (RL)

The Return Loss (RL) is a parameter which indicates the amount of power that
is “lost” to the load and does not return as a reflection. As explained in the preceding
section, waves are reflected leading to the formation of standing waves, when the
transmitter and antenna impedance do not match. Hence the RL is a parameter similar
to the VSWR to indicate how well the matching between the transmitter and antenna
has taken place.
The RL is given as:

(1.21)
For perfect matching between the transmitter and the antenna, Γ = 0 and RL = ∞
which means no power would be reflected back, whereas a Γ = 1 has a RL = 0 dB,
which implies that all incident power is reflected. For practical applications, a VSWR
of 2 is acceptable, since this corresponds to a RL of -9.54 dB.

1.7.7 Antenna Efficiency

The antenna efficiency is a parameter which takes into account the amount of
losses at the terminals of the antenna and within the structure of the antenna. These
losses are given by [5] as:
• Reflections because of mismatch between the transmitter and the antenna.
• I 2R losses (conduction and dielectric)

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1.7.8 Antenna Gain

Antenna gain is a parameter which is closely related to the directivity of the

antenna. We know that the directivity is how much an antenna concentrates energy in
one direction in preference to radiation in other directions. Hence, if the antenna is
100% efficient, then the directivity would be equal to the antenna gain and the
antenna would be an isotropic radiator. Since all antennas will radiate more in some
direction that in others, therefore the gain is the amount of power that can be achieved
in one direction at the expense of the power lost in the others as explained by Ulaby
[7]. The gain is always related to the main lobe and is specified in the direction of
maximum radiation unless indicated. It is given as:

G(θ ,φ )= ecd D(θ ,φ ) (dBi) (1.24)

1.7.9 Polarization

Polarization of a radiated wave is defined by [5] as “that property of an

electromagnetic wave describing the time varying direction and relative magnitude of
the electric field vector”. The polarization of an antenna refers to the polarization of
the electric field vector of the radiated wave.
In other words, the position and direction of the electric field with reference to
the earth’s surface or ground determines the wave polarization. The most common
types of polarization include the linear (horizontal or vertical) and circular (right hand
polarization or the left hand polarization).
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 Figure 1.12: A linearly (vertically) polarized wave
If the path of the electric field vector is back and forth along a line, it is said to
be linearly polarized. Figure 1.12 shows a linearly polarized wave. In a circularly
polarized wave, the electric field vector remains constant in length but rotates around
in a circular path. A left hand circular polarized wave is one in which the wave rotates
counterclockwise whereas right hand circular polarized wave exhibits clockwise
motion as shown in Figure 1.13.

Figure 1.13: Commonly used polarization scheme

1.7.10 Bandwidth
The bandwidth of an antenna is defined by [5] as “the range of usable
frequencies within which the performance of the antenna, with respect to some
characteristic, conforms to a specified standard.” The bandwidth can be the range of
frequencies on either side of the center frequency where the antenna characteristics
like input impedance, radiation pattern, beam width, polarization, side lobe level or
gain, are close to those values which have been obtained at the center frequency.

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Figure 1.14: Measuring bandwidth from the plot of the reflection coefficient

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 As we already know my operating frequencies we can therefore calculate my
desired bandwidth and compare it the measured result to see if the bandwidth in the
antenna is being obtained.

By calculating the broadband equation I can already assume that the

bandwidth for my antenna is a narrowband as the broadband bandwidth is less than 2.

The antenna bandwidth can also be determined by using a definition of the

antenna beam width. Impedance bandwidth (also referred to as return loss bandwidth)
already depends on a large number of parameters such as the dielectric and size of the
ground plane, both of which alter the Q factor. The type of feed structure of the
antenna affects the bandwidth as well.
Because the impedance bandwidth consists of many parameters, it is too
complex to make a design calculation from a desired bandwidth point of view.
Therefore these are often measured within the return loss of -6 dB.

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1.8 TYPES OF ANTENNAS

Antennas come in different shapes and sizes to suit different types of

microwave application and wireless applications. The characteristics of an antenna
are very much determined by its shape, size and the type of material that it is made of.
Some of the commonly used antennas are briefly described below.

1.8.1 Half Wave Dipole

The length of this antenna is equal to half of its wavelength as the name itself
suggests. Dipoles can be shorter or longer than half the wavelength, but a tradeoff
exists in the performance and hence the half wavelength dipole is widely used.

Figure 1.15: Half Wave Dipole

The dipole antenna is fed by a two wire transmission line, where the two
currents in the conductors are of sinusoidal distribution and equal in amplitude, but
opposite in direction. Hence, due to canceling effects, no radiation occurs from the
transmission line. As shown in Figure 1.15, the currents in the arms of the dipole are
in the same direction and they produce radiation in the horizontal direction. Thus, for
a vertical orientation, the dipole radiates in the horizontal direction. The typical gain
of the dipole is 2dB and it has a bandwidth of about 10%. The half power beam width
is about 78 degrees in the E plane and its directivity is 1.64 (2.15dB) with a radiation
resistance of 73 Ω Figure 1.16 shows the radiation pattern for the half wave dipole.

Figure 1.16: Radiation Pattern for Half Wave Dipole

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1.8.2 Monopole Antenna

The monopole antenna, shown in Figure 1.17, results from applying the image
theory to the dipole. According to this theory, if a conducting plane is placed below a
single element of length L / 2 carrying a current, then the combination of the element
and its image acts identically to a dipole of length L except that the radiation occurs
only in the space above the plane as discussed by Saunders [8].

Figure 1.17: Monopole Antenna

For this type of antenna, the directivity is doubled and the radiation resistance
is halved when compared to the dipole. Thus, a half wave dipole can be approximated
by a quarter wave monopole (L / 2 = λ / 4). The monopole is very useful in mobile
antennas where the conducting plane can be the car body or the handset case. The
typical gain for the quarter wavelength monopole is 2-6dB and it has a bandwidth of
about 10%. Its radiation resistance is 36.5 Ω and its directivity is 3.28 (5.16dB) [4].
The radiation pattern for the monopole is shown below in Figure 1.18.

Figure 1.18: Radiation pattern for the Monopole Antenna

1.8.3 Loop Antennas

The loop antenna is a conductor bent into the shape of a closed curve such as a
circle or a square with a gap in the conductor to form the terminals as shown in
Figure 1.19. There are two types of loop antennas-electrically small loop antennas
and electrically large loop antennas.

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 If the total loop circumference is very small as compared to the wavelength
(L <<< λ), then the loop antenna is said to be electrically small. An electrically large
loop antenna typically has its circumference close to a wavelength. The far-field
radiation patterns of the small loop antenna are insensitive to shape.

Figure 1.19: Loop Antenna

As shown in Figure 1.20, the radiation patterns are identical to that of a dipole
despite the fact that the dipole is vertically polarized whereas the small circular loop
is horizontally polarized.
The performance of the loop antenna can be increased by filling the core with
ferrite. This helps in increasing the radiation resistance. When the perimeter or
circumference of the loop antenna is close to a wavelength, then the antenna is said to
be a large loop antenna.
The radiation pattern of the large loop antenna is different than that of the small
loop antenna. For a one wavelength square loop antenna, radiation is maximum
normal to the plane of the loop (along the z axis). In the plane of the loop, there is a
null in the direction parallel to the side containing the feed (along the x axis), and
there is a lobe in a direction perpendicular to the side containing the feed (along the y
axis). Loop antennas generally have a gain from -2dB to 3dB and a bandwidth of
around 10%. The small loop antenna is very popular as a receiving antenna [4].
Single turn loop antennas are used in pagers and multiturn loop antennas are used in
AM broadcast receivers.

26
 Figure 1.20: Radiation Pattern of Small and Large Loop Antenna

1.8.4 Helical Antennas

A helical antenna or helix is one in which a conductor connected to a ground

plane, is wound into a helical shape. Figure 1.21 illustrates a helix antenna. The
antenna can operate in a number of modes, however the two principal modes are the
normal mode (broadside radiation) and the axial mode (endfire radiation). When the
helix diameter is very small as compared to the wavelength, then the antenna operates
in the normal mode. However, when the circumference of the helix is of the order of a
wavelength, then the helical antenna is said to be operating in the axial mode.

Figure 1.21: Helix Antenna

27
 In the normal mode of operation, the antenna field is maximum in a plane
normal to the helix axis and minimum along its axis. This mode provides low
bandwidth and is generally used for hand-portable mobile applications.
In the axial mode of operation, the antenna radiates as an end fire radiator with
a single beam along the helix axis. This mode provides better gain (up to 15dB) and
high bandwidth ratio (1.78:1) as compared to the normal mode of operation. For this
mode of operation, the beam becomes narrower as the number of turns on the helix is
increased. Due to its broadband nature of operation, the antenna in

Figure 1.22: Radiation Pattern of Helix Antenna

The axial mode is used mainly for satellite communications. Figure 1.22
above shows the radiation patterns for the normal mode as well as the axial mode of
operations.
1.8.5 Horn Antennas

Horn antennas are used typically in the microwave region (gigahertz range)
where waveguides are the standard feed method, since horn antennas essentially
consist of a waveguide whose end walls are flared outwards to form a megaphone like
structure. Horns provide high gain, low VSWR, relatively wide bandwidth, low
weight, and are easy to construct [4]. The aperture of the horn can be rectangular,
circular or elliptical. However, rectangular horns are widely used. The three basic
types of horn antennas that utilize a rectangular geometry are shown in Figure 1.23.
These horns are fed by a rectangular waveguide which have a broad horizontal well
as shown in the figure. For dominant waveguide mode excitation, the E-plane is
vertical and H-plane horizontal. If the broad wall dimension of the horn is flared with
the narrow wall of the waveguide being left as it is, then it is called an H-plane
sectoral horn antenna as shown in the figure.

28
 If the flaring occurs only in the E-plane dimension, it is called an E-plane
sectoral horn antenna. A pyramidal horn antenna is obtained when flaring occurs
along both the dimensions. The horn basically acts as a transition from the
waveguide mode to the free-space mode and this transition reduces the reflected
waves and emphasizes the traveling waves which lead to low VSWR and wide
bandwidth [4]. The horn is widely used as a feed element for large radio astronomy,
satellite tracking, and communication dishes.

Figure 1.23: Types of Horn Antenna

The principle of how it works is very simple. If a waveguide is terminated it
will radiate energy producing a broad radiated pattern figure 1.23(a).

Figure 1.23 (a): Radiation pattern from waveguide

1.8.6 Yagi-Uda Antenna

Yagi-Uda array, commonly known simply as a Yagi antenna, is a directional

antenna consisting of a driven element (typically a dipole or folded dipole) and
additional parasitic elements (usually a so-called reflector and one or more directors).

29
 Figure 1.24: Various Shapes of Horn Antenna

Highly directional antennas such as the Yagi-Uda are commonly referred to as

"beam antennas" due to their high gain. However the Yagi-Uda design only achieves
this high gain over a rather narrow bandwidth, making it more useful for various
communications bands (including amateur radio) but less suitable for traditional radio
and television broadcast bands. Amateur radio operators ("hams") frequently employ
these for communication on HF, VHF, and UHF bands, often constructing such
antennas themselves ("home brewing"), leading to a quantity of technical papers and
software. Wideband antennas used for VHF/UHF broadcast bands include the lower-
gain log-periodic dipole array, which is often confused with the Yagi-Uda array due
to its superficially similar appearance.

30
 That design along with other phased arrays have electrical connections on
each element, whereas the Yagi-Uda design operates on the basis of electromagnetic
interaction between the "parasitic" elements and the one driven (dipole) element.
In the above sections, several antennas have been discussed. Another
commonly used antenna is the Microstrip patch antenna. The aim of this thesis is to
design a compact microstrip patch antenna to be used in wireless communication and
this antenna is explained in the next chapter.

1.9 DESCRIPTION OF SEVERAL PREVIOUS WORKS

In the last 15-20 years compact micro strip antenna research has progressed
considerably. Some works based on micro strip antenna are discussed below:
➢ Lotfollah L. Shafai, Walid A. Chamma, Mohamed Barakat, Peter C.
Strickland, and Guy Seguin investigated Dual-Band Dual-Polarized Perforated
Microstrip Antennas for SAR Applications in the year 2000. For dual-band dual-
polarized synthetic aperture radar (SAR) applications a compact low-profile design is
investigated by the authors. Stacked-patch configurations were used to meet up the
bandwidth requirements, especially in the L-band.
➢ Sean C.Ortiz, Tony Ivanov, and Amir Mortazawi designed Quasi-Optical
Amplifier Array with the help of CPW-Fed Microstrip Patch in the year 2000. A
quasi-optical power-combining amplifier array based on coplanar waveguide (CPW)-
fed microstrip patch antennas was designed by them. Both the transmit and receive
antennas employ CPW-fed patches.
➢ In the year 2007, R. Nilavalan, I.J. Craddock, A. Preece, J. Leendertz and R.
Benjamin designed wideband microstrip patch antenna for breast cancer tumour
detection. A patch antenna is presented which has been designed to radiate
frequencies in the range 4–9.5 GHz into human breast tissue. The antenna is shown by
means of previously unpublished simulation and practical measurements to possess
wide input bandwidth, radiation patterns that remain largely consistent over the band
of interest and a good front-to-back ratio.

31
 CHAPTER-2
BASICS OF MICROSTRIP ANTENNAS

2.1 MICROSTRIP ANTENNNA

In its most basic form, a Microstrip patch antenna consists of a radiating patch on
one side of a dielectric substrate which has a ground plane on the other side as shown in
Figure 2.1.The patch is generally made of conducting material such as copper or gold
and can take any possible shape. The radiating patch and the feed lines are usually photo
etched on the dielectric substrate.

Figure 2.1: Structure of a Microstrip Patch Antenna

In order to simplify analysis and performance prediction, the patch is generally
square, rectangular, circular, triangular, and elliptical or some other common shape as
shown in Figure 2.2.
In order to make performance predictions the rectangular patch antenna has the
following parameters, where λ0 is the wavelength in vacuum also called the free-space
wavelength. For a rectangular patch,

Figure 2.2: Common Shapes of Microstrip Patch Elements

32
 In electromagnetic radiation λ is often given instead of λ0 as the speed of light in
vacuum is very close to the speed of light in air.
Microstrip patch antennas radiate primarily because of the fringing fields
between the patch edge and the ground plane. For good antenna performance, a thick
dielectric substrate having a low dielectric constant is desirable since this provides better
efficiency, larger bandwidth and better radiation. However, such a configuration leads to
a larger antenna size. In order to design a compact Microstrip patch antenna, higher
dielectric constants must be used which are less efficient and result in narrower
bandwidth. Hence a compromise must be reached between antenna dimensions and
antenna performance.
2.1.1 Advantages and Disadvantages

Microstrip patch antennas are increasing in popularity for use in wireless applications
due to their low-profile structure. Therefore they are extremely compatible for embedded
antennas in handheld wireless devices such as cellular phones, pagers etc... The
telemetry and communication antennas on missiles need to be thin and conformal and
are often Microstrip patch antennas. Another area where they have been used
successfully is in Satellite communication. Some of their principal advantages discussed
by Kumar and Ray are given below:
➢ Light weight and low volume.
➢ Low profile planar configuration which can be easily made conformal to host
surface.
➢ Low fabrication cost, hence can be manufactured in large quantities.
➢ Supports both, linear as well as circular polarization.
➢ Can be easily integrated with microwave integrated circuits (MICs).
➢ Capable of dual and triple frequency operations.
➢ Mechanically robust when mounted on rigid surfaces.
Microstrip patch antennas suffer from a number of disadvantages as compared to
conventional antennas.
Some of their major disadvantages discussed by Garg et al are given below:
➢ Narrow bandwidth
➢ Low efficiency
➢ Low Gain
➢ Extraneous radiation from feeds and junctions

33
 ➢ Poor end fire radiator except tapered slot antennas
➢ Low power handling capacity.
➢ Surface wave excitation
Microstrip patch antennas have a very high antenna quality factor (Q). Q
represents the losses associated with the antenna and a large Q leads to narrow
bandwidth and low efficiency. Q can be reduced by increasing the thickness of the
dielectric substrate. But as the thickness increases, an increasing fraction of the total
power delivered by the source goes into a surface wave. This surface wave contribution
can be counted as an unwanted power loss since it is ultimately scattered at the dielectric
bends and causes degradation of the antenna characteristics. However, surface waves can
be minimized by use of photonic band gap structures as discussed by Qian et al. Other
problems such as lower gain and lower power handling capacity can be overcome by
using an array configuration for the elements.
2.1.2 Q Factor

Microstrip antennas have a very high antenna Q (quality factor). Q represents the
losses in the antenna[2], where a large Q leads to narrow bandwidth and low efficiency.
Q can be reduced in the antenna by increasing the dielectric substrate thickness, but this
will cause less power delivered from the source because of power loss in the dielectric
substrate and making surface waves, as the power is scattered by the dielectric bends.
2.2 FEED TECHNIQUES

Microstrip patch antennas can be fed by a variety of methods. These methods can
be classified into two categories- contacting and non-contacting[9]. In the contacting
method, the RF power is fed directly to the radiating patch using a connecting element
such as a microstrip line. In the non-contacting scheme, electromagnetic field coupling is
done to transfer power between the microstrip line and the radiating patch. The four most
popular feed techniques used are the microstrip line, coaxial probe (both contacting
schemes), aperture coupling and proximity coupling (both non-contacting schemes).
2.2.1 Microstrip Feed Line

In this type of feed technique, a conducting strip is connected directly to the edge
of the microstrip patch as shown in Figure 2.3. The conducting strip is smaller in width
as compared to the patch and this kind of feed arrangement has the advantage that the
feed can be etched on the same substrate to provide a planar structure.

34
 Figure 2.3: Microstrip Line Feed
The purpose of the inset cut in the patch is to match the impedance of the feed
line to the patch without the need for any additional matching element. This is achieved
by properly controlling the inset position. Hence this is an easy feeding scheme, since it
provides ease of fabrication and simplicity in modeling as well as impedance matching.
However as the thickness of the dielectric substrate being used, increases, surface waves
and spurious feed radiation also increases, which hampers the bandwidth of the antenna.
The feed radiation also leads to undesired cross polarized radiation.When designing the
feed line, this must be along the side of the length, as the current flow is along the
direction of the feed wire and at the length is where the maximum radiation of the patch
is created.
2.2.2 Coaxial Feed

The Coaxial feed or probe feed is a very common technique used for feeding
Microstrip patch antennas. As seen from Figure 2.4, the inner conductor of the coaxial
connector extends through the dielectric and is soldered to the radiating patch, while the
outer conductor is connected to the ground plane.
The main advantage of this type of feeding scheme is that the feed can be placed
at any desired location inside the patch in order to match with its input impedance. This
feed method is easy to fabricate and has low spurious radiation.
However, its major disadvantage is that it provides narrow bandwidth and is
difficult to model since a hole has to be drilled in the substrate and the connector
protrudes outside the ground plane, thus not making it completely planar for thick
substrates ( h >0.02λo ). Also, for thicker substrates, the increased probe length makes
the input impedance more inductive, leading to matching problems.

35
 It is seen above that for a thick dielectric substrate, which provides broad
bandwidth, the microstrip line feed and the coaxial feed suffer from numerous
disadvantages. The non-contacting feed techniques which have been discussed below,
solve these problems.

Figure 2.4: Probe fed Rectangular Microstrip Patch Antenna

We chose to use the feed line method as this is the most popular and as this
seems more straightforward when seen from a simulation perspective. Next will follow a
description on how to define the size of the patch and the line feed dimensions.

2.2.3 Aperture Coupled Feed

In this type of feed technique, the radiating patch and the microstrip feed lines are
separated by the ground plane as shown in Figure 2.5. Coupling between the patch and
the feed line is made through a slot or an aperture in the ground plane.

Figure 2.5: Aperture-coupled feed

The coupling aperture is usually centered under the patch, leading to lower cross
polarization due to symmetry of the configuration. The amount of coupling from the feed
line to the patch is determined by the shape, size and location of the aperture. Since the
ground plane separates the patch and the feed line, spurious radiation is minimized.
Generally, a high dielectric material is used for the bottom substrate and a thick, low
dielectric constant material is used for the top substrate to optimize radiation from the
patch.

36
 The major disadvantage of this feed technique is that it is difficult to fabricate
due to multiple layers, which also increases the antenna thickness. This feeding scheme
also provides narrow bandwidth.
2.2.4 Proximity Coupled Feed

This type of feed technique is also called as the electromagnetic coupling

scheme. As shown in Figure 2.6, two dielectric substrates are used such that the feed line
is between the two substrates and the radiating patch is on top of the upper substrate. The
main advantage of this feed technique is that it eliminates spurious feed radiation and
provides very high bandwidth (as high as 13%), due to overall increase in the thickness
of the microstrip patch antenna. This scheme also provides choices between two
different dielectric media, one for the patch and one for the feed line to optimize the
individual performances.

Figure 2.6: Proximity-coupled Feed

Matching can be achieved by controlling the length of the feed line and the width-
to-line ratio of the patch. The major disadvantage of this feed scheme is that it is difficult
to fabricate because of the two dielectric layers which need proper alignment. Also, there
is an increase in the overall thickness of the antenna.
2.2.5 The Characteristics of Different Feed Techniques

Table 2.1 Comparison of the Different Feed Techniques

37
2.3 METHOD OF ANALYSIS

The most popular models for the analysis of Microstrip patch antennas are the
transmission line model, cavity model, and full wave model (which include primarily
integral equations/Moment Method)[9]. The transmission line model is the simplest of
all and it gives good physical insight but it is less accurate. The cavity model is more
accurate and gives good physical insight but is complex in nature. The full wave models
are extremely accurate, versatile and can treat single elements, finite and infinite arrays,
stacked elements, arbitrary shaped elements and coupling. These give less insight as
compared to the two models mentioned above and are far more complex in nature.
2.3.1 Transmission Line Model (Microstrip Feed Line)

This model represents the microstrip antenna by two slots of width Wand height
h, separated by a transmission line of length L. The microstrip is essentially a no
homogeneous line of two dielectrics, typically the substrate and air shown in fig 2.7.

Figure 2.7: Microstrip Line Figure 2.8: Electric Field Lines

Hence, as seen from Figure 2.8, most of the electric field lines reside in the
substrate and parts of some lines in air. As a result, this transmission line cannot support
pure transverse electric- magnetic (TEM) mode of transmission, since the phase
velocities would be different in the air and the substrate. Instead, the dominant mode of
propagation would be the quasi-TEM mode. Hence, an effective dielectric constant (reff)
must be obtained in order to account for the fringing and the wave propagation in the
line. The value of reffis slightly less than r because the fringing fields around the
periphery of the patch are not confined in the dielectric substrate but are also spread in
the air as shown in Figure 2.8 above. The expression for εreffis given by Balanis [2]as:

𝟏
𝜺𝒓 + 𝟏 𝜺𝒓 −𝟏 𝒉 −𝟐
εreff = + [𝟏 + 𝟏𝟐 𝒘] ………………………………….(2.1)
𝟐 𝟐

Where, εreff = Effective dielectric constant

38
 εr = Dielectric constant of substrate
h = Height of the dielectric substrate
w = Width of the patch

Consider Figure 2.9 below, which shows a rectangular microstrip patch antenna
of length L, width W resting on a substrate of height h. The co-ordinate axis is selected
such that the length is along the x direction, width is along the y direction and the height
is along the z direction. In order to operate in the fundamental 10 TM mode, the length of
the patch must be slightly less than λ / 2 where λ is the wavelength in the dielectric
medium and is equal to λo/ εreff where λ0 is the free space wavelength. The 10 TM
modes imply that the field varies one λ / 2 cycles along the length, and there is no
variation along the width of the patch. Where  is defined as:

“A transverse mode of a beam of electromagnetic radiation is a particular

electromagnetic field pattern of radiation measured in a plane perpendicular (i.e.
transverse) to the propagation direction of the beam.”

Figure 2.9: Microstrip Patch Antenna

In the Figure 2.10 shown below, the microstrip patch antenna is represented by two
slots, separated by a transmission line of length L and open circuited at both the ends.
Along the width of the patch, the voltage is maximum and current is minimum due to the
open ends. The fields at the edges can be resolved into normal and tangential
components with respect to the ground plane.

39
Figure 2.10: Top View of Antenna Figure 2.11: Side View of Antenna
It is seen from Figure 2.11 that the normal components of the electric field at the
two edges along the width are in opposite directions and thus out of phase since the
patch is λ/2long and hence they cancel each other in the broadside direction. The
tangential components(seen in Figure 2.11), which are in phase, means that the resulting
fields combine to give maximum radiated field normal to the surface of the structure.
Hence the edges along the width can be represented as two radiating slots, which are λ/2
apart and excited in phase and radiating in the half space above the ground plane. The
fringing fields along the width can be modeled as radiating slots and electrically the
patch of the microstrip antenna looks greater than its physical dimensions. The
dimensions of the patch along its length have now been extended on each end by a
distance ΔL, which is given empirically by Hammerstad [7]as:
𝑾
(𝜺𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒇 + 𝟎.𝟑)( + 𝟎.𝟐𝟔𝟒)
∆L = 0.412𝒉 𝒉
𝑾 …………………….…… (2.2)
(𝜺𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒇 − 𝟎.𝟐𝟓𝟖)( + 𝟎.𝟖)
𝒉

The effective length of the patch 𝑳𝒆𝒇𝒇 now becomes:

𝑳𝒆𝒇𝒇 = 𝑳 + 𝟐 (∆𝑳) …………………………………………. (2.3)
For a given resonant frequency f0, the effective length is given by [5]as:
𝑪
𝑳𝒆𝒇𝒇 = …………………………………….(2.4)
𝟐𝒇𝟎 √𝜺𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒇

For a rectangular Microstrip Patch Antenna, the resonant frequency for any TMmn mode
is given by James and Hall [8] as:
𝟏
𝑪 𝒎 𝟐 𝒏 𝟐 𝟐
f0 =
𝟐√𝜺𝒓𝒆𝒇𝒇
[( 𝑳 ) + (𝑾) ] ……………………... (2.5)

Where, m and n are modes along L and W respectively.

For efficient radiation, the width W is given by Bahl and Bhartia [9] as:

40
 𝑪
W= ……………………………………………………….... (2.6)
(𝜺 + 𝟏)
𝟐𝒇𝟎 √ 𝒓
𝟐

Where,
c= the speed of light.
fc= the resonance frequency.
r= the dielectric constant of the substrate.
Leff= effective length.
L= actual length.

2.3.2Ground Planes

Essentially the transmission line model is applicable to an infinite ground

plane only. However, it has been shown that a finite ground plane can be used for if
the ground plane is 6 times larger than the height of the dielectric substrate plus the
used length or width. The ground plane can now be calculated as[2]:
Wg= [(6*h) +W]
Lg = [(6*h) + L]

41
 CHAPTER-3

RADIO FREQUENCY AND MICROWAVE FREQUENCY

In this chapter, the basic concept of radio frequency and microwave frequency
are discussed, and their advantage, disadvantage, application are explained.
Particularly microwave frequency band are explained.

3.1 MICROWAVES

By "microwaves" we mean the range of radio frequencies between about 1

GHz (one gigahertz, or one billion oscillations per second) and about 300 GHz. For
comparison, television transmissions normally occupy frequencies below the
microwave region, from about 50 MHz to 600 MHz (one Megahertz is one million
oscillations per second, one GHz is 1,000 MHz). Cellular telephones operate in two
bands, one from about 800 to 900 MHz and another around 1.8 to 1.95 GHz, again
just below this definition of microwave frequencies.
Although there is no formal definition of the frequency range for "microwaves",
some text books will define all frequencies above 300 MHz as microwaves.
Apparatus and techniques may be described qualitatively as "microwave" when the
wavelengths of signals are roughly the same as the dimensions of the equipment, so
that lumped-element circuit theory is inaccurate. As a consequence, practical
microwave technique tends to move away from the discrete resistors, capacitors, and
inductors used with lower-frequency radio waves. Instead, distributed circuit elements
and transmission-line theory are more useful methods for design and analysis. Open-
wire and coaxial transmission lines give way to waveguides and strip line, and
lumped-element tuned circuits are replaced by cavity resonators or resonant lines.
Effects of reflection, polarization, scattering, diffraction, and atmospheric absorption
usually associated with visible light are of practical significance in the study of
microwave propagation. The same equations of electromagnetic theory apply at all
frequencies.
The prefix "micro-" in "microwave" is not meant to suggest a wavelength in
the micrometer range. It indicates that microwaves are "small" compared to waves
used in typical radio broadcasting, in that they have shorter wavelengths.

42
 The boundaries between far infrared light, terahertz radiation, microwaves,
and ultra-high-frequency radio waves are fairly arbitrary and are used variously
between different fields of study.
The term "microwaves" seems to have first appeared in writing in a 1932
paper by Nello Carrara in the first issue of Alta Frequenza. The Italian word is
microonde. The term gained acceptance during the Second World War to describe
wavelengths less than about 30 cm. These waves were much shorter than those
normally used for communications (at that time), but were being used in RADAR.
A 30 centimeter wavelength is equivalent to 1 GHz (to convert from
frequency to wavelength, just divide the speed of light 300,000,000 meters per second
by the frequency in cycles per second to get meters of wavelength).
3.1.1 Radio Waves and Radio Frequency

Electromagnetic radiation is a wave that combines electric and magnetic fields,

moving out from its source as an expanding sphere and having waves as the fields
alternate in value. Its formal name is Transverse Electro Magnetic wave, or TEM.
This kind of radiation has different utility as its wavelength changes.
Waves of a very long wavelength, such as thousands of meters, tend to travel
along the surface of the earth and even penetrate into the water. These are useful for
communication with submarines, and for broadcasting time signals. Broadcast radio,
short-wave radio, television, cellular telephones, walky-talkies, 2-way police radios,
satellite television, and other such communication/broadcast systems all use
electromagnetic radiation, or "Radio Frequency Waves". Each communication service
uses a part of the spectrum that is suitable for its needs.
Light, infra-red heat, ultra-violet (black light), and even X-rays and Gamma-
rays are all forms of electromagnetic waves. All of these last forms are thousands of
times shorter wavelengths than the shortest wavelengths of microwaves. They also
behave in ways where their particle-like nature becomes apparent.
Radio frequency (RF) is a rate of oscillation in the range of about 3 kHz to
300 GHz, which corresponds to the frequency of radio waves, and the alternating
currents which carry radio signals. RF usually refers to electrical rather than
mechanical oscillations, although mechanical RF systems.

43
 Although radio frequency is a rate of oscillation, the term "radio frequency" or
its acronym "RF" are also used as a synonym for radio – i.e. to describe the use of
wireless communication, as opposed to communication via electric wires.
3.2 USE OF MICROWAVES?

Communication using electromagnetic radiation (except for light) began early in

this century, and most early practical systems used very long wavelengths (low
frequencies) which travelled great distances. Eventually, electronics were developed,
including the vacuum tube (or "valve") which allowed controlled frequencies and
modulation. This led to the use of higher frequencies, many channels, and
commercial and industrial radio. During the 1930's and 1940's various experimenters
discovered that higher frequencies could bring other advantages to communications.
Some of these experimenters were government agencies and the military - some were
universities, and some were private individuals.
Among these discoveries were that microwaves are easier to control (than
longer wavelengths) because small antennas could direct the waves very well. One
advantage of such control is that the energy could be easily confined to a tight beam
(expressed as narrow beam width). This beam could be focused on another antenna
dozens of miles away, making it very difficult for someone to intercept the
conversation. Another characteristic is that because of their high frequency, greater
amounts of information could be put on them (expressed as increased modulation
bandwidth). Both of these advantages (narrow beam width and modulation
bandwidth) make microwaves very useful for RADAR as well as communications.
3.2.1 What are photons, and how does this relate to microwaves?

A photon is a quantum of electromagnetic energy. Physicists think of

electromagnetic energy as having a "dual nature", in that some experiments reveal its
nature as a particle which we call a photon and other experiments reveal its nature as
a wave.
When it comes to lower frequencies (longer wavelengths), such as microwaves,
VHF, and the like, it becomes much less convenient to think of energy in the form of
photons, but there is no specific reason to decide that only one nature exists at these
longer wavelengths. Sometimes photons are referred to when describing an RF
interaction with matter.

44
 The author does not know of any other word to describe the particulate nature
of a propagating RF energy field except "photon". When the interaction with matter
converts the energy into a mechanical form, we sometimes refer to the energy packets
as "phonons". This is not a propagating Electro-Magnetic (EM) field, but rather a
sound wave, and at the most minute level, even mechanical energy is quantized.
In most antenna, transmission line, waveguide, and quasi-optic formulations,
the EM field is described according to its wave-like nature. When dealing with the
interaction between a microwave field and a molecule of Oxygen (for instance), in
order to understand just why there are specific resonant frequencies of the molecule, a
quantized nature re-appears, and the notion of the field expressed as photons can
make sense.
3.2.2 Microwave Sources

High-power microwave sources use specialized vacuum tubes to generate

microwaves. These devices operate on different principles from low-frequency
vacuum tubes, using the ballistic motion of electrons in a vacuum under the influence
of controlling electric or magnetic fields, and include the magnetron (used in
microwave ovens), klystron, traveling-wave tube (TWT), and gyrotron. These devices
work in the density modulated mode, rather than the current modulated mode. This
means that they work on the basis of clumps of electrons flying ballistically through
them, rather than using a continuous stream of electrons.

3.3 BASIC MICROWAVE COMMUNICATION SYSTEM

Microwave signal are used for communication over long distance continental or
intercontinental. Microwave is the communication link which makes the
communication possible. The basic block diagram of microwave communication
system is shown in figure 3.1.

Figure 3.1: Microwave Communication Link from Location A to Location B

45
Figure 3.2: Microwave Communication Link Transmitter and Receiver Section
3.3.1 Construction

• Antenna: Mostly a parabolic refractor types of antenna are used which is used
to transmit and receive the signal.
• Circulator: A circulator is used to isolate transmitter with the receiver input
and to couple transmitter to antenna and antenna to receiver input.
• Protection Circuitry: It provides safety to the mixer from overloads.
• Mixer (Receiver): It has two outputs. One is the incoming signal and other is
the signal from lower band pass filter (BPF).The mixer gives an IF signal of
70 MHz
• Band pass filter (BPF): It provides the necessary selectivity to the receiver
and it prevents the interference.
• IF amplifier and AGC: It amplifies the signal up to a intermediate frequency
of 70Mhz. and its gain is controlled through AGC (automatic gain control)

46
 • Amplitude limiter: As the signal is frequency modulated one so as amplitude
limiter is used to avoid unwanted amplitude variations.
• Mixer (Transmitter): It is used to convert IF frequency to transmitting
microwave frequency band to pass through it and hence prevent interference.
• POWER AMPLIFIER: This amplifier amplifies the transmitted power from
a repeater section in the range of 0.2W to 10W.
• MICROWAVE SOURCE: Klystron & Gunn Oscillators were used as
microwave source. Now, V H F transistor crystal oscillators are used for
microwave source.
• POWER SPLITTER: It divides the output power from a microwave source
and feeds a large portion to the transmitter mixer, which converts it into
transmitting microwave frequency.
• SHIFT OSCILATOR: It provides one of the inputs to the balanced mixer so
that it produces 70MHz IF at the output of receiver mixer.
This microwave link communicates with 600 to 2700 channels per carrier.
Thus the number of carriers in each direction can be four to twelve.

3.3.2 Microwave Advantages and Disadvantages

➢ Advantages:

• No cables needed
• Multiple channels available

➢ Disadvantages:

• Line-of-sight will be disrupted if any obstacle, such as new buildings, are in

the way
• Signal absorption by the atmosphere. Microwaves suffer from attenuation due
to atmospheric conditions.
• Towers are expensive to build

3.3.3 Applications of Microwave Engineering

As more applications spring up, overcrowding and interference at lower
frequency bands pushes applications toward higher operating frequencies. Higher
frequency operation has several advantages including.

47
 • Wireless communications
• Remote sensing
• Industrial and home applications

3.4 RADIO AND MICROWAVE FREQUENCY BANDS

The Radio and Microwave frequency use by setting specifications for

transmit frequency, power, bandwidth, modulation, and location, to name a few, and
requires a license for many uses.
Note the following multiplier abbreviations for frequency:

Hz (hertz) cycles per second 1 Hz

kHz (kilohertz) one thousand hertz 1,000 Hz

MHz (megahertz) one million hertz 1,000,000 Hz

GHz (gigahertz) one billion hertz 1,000,000,000 Hz

THz (terahertz) one trillion hertz 1,000,000,000,000 Hz

Table 3.1: Frequency Multipliers

Figure 3.3: Simple Radio Band Designations.

48
Microwaves in the Electromagnetic Spectrum (300 MHz - 300 GHz)

Figure 3.4: Electromagnetic Radiation Spectrum

Figure 3.5: Frequency Band Designations

In order to receive radio signals an antenna must be used. However, since the
antenna will pick up thousands of radio signals at a time, a radio tuner is necessary to
tune in to a particular frequency (or frequency range).[4]

49
 This is typically done via a resonator – in its simplest form, a circuit with a
capacitor and an inductor forming a tuned circuit. The resonator amplifies oscillations
within a particular frequency band, while reducing oscillations at other frequencies
outside the band. The radio frequency bands designation are given below-

Frequency
Designation Frequency Wavelength Typical Service
Band

Extremely Military
ELF Low 3-30 Hz 104-105 Km communications
Frequency

Super Low 30-300 Hz Communicate with

SLF 103- 104 Km
Frequency their submarines

Ultra Low 300 Hz - 3 Earthquakes, Earth

ULF 100-103 Km
Frequency kHz Mode Communications

3 kHz - 30
Very Low
VLF kHz 10-100 Km Navigation, sonar
Frequency

30 kHz -
Radio beacons,
LF Low Frequency 300 kHz 1-10 Km
navigational aids

AM broadcasting,
300 kHz -
Medium 100m-1 marintime radio, Coast
MF 3 MHz
Frequency Km Guard communication,
direction finding

Telephone, telegraph,
and facsimile; shortwave
international
3 MHz -
High broadcasting; amature
HF 30 MHz 10-100m
Frequency radio; citizen's band;
ship-to-coast and ship-
to-aircraft
communication

Television, FM
broadcast, air-traffic
Very High 30 MHz -
VHF 1-10m control, police, taxicab
Frequency 300 MHz
mobil radio, navigational
aids

50
 Ultra High Television, satellite
300 MHz -
Frequency communication,
UHF 3 GHz 10cm-1m
(decimeter radiosonde, surveillance
waves) radar, navigational aids

Airborne radar,
Super High
3 GHz - microwave links,
Frequency
SHF 30 GHz 1-10cm common- carrier land
(centimeter
mobile communication,
waves)
satellite communication

Extremely High
30 GHz -
Frequency
EHF 300 GHz 1mm-1cm Radar, experimental
(millimeter
waves)

Tremendously
300 GHz - 0.1 mm - 1
THF High
3000 GHz mm
Frequency

Table 3.2: Radio Frequency Band Designation

Table 3.3: Microwave Letter Band Designations

51
 Frequency Old band designation New band designation

500-1,000 MHz VHF C

1-2 GHz L D

2-3 GHz S E

3-4 GHz S F

4-6 GHz C G

6-8 GHz C H

8-10 GHz X I

10-12.4 GHz X J

12.4-18 GHz Ku J

18-20 GHz K J

20-26.5 GHz K K

26.5-40 GHz Ka K

Table 3.4: Microwave Frequency Band Designations

Different authors have used different frequency boundary for letter designation of the
microwave bands. These of those are shown below here.

52
Table 3.5: Different Frequency Boundary for Letter Designation

53
 CHAPTER-4

ZELAND INC’S IE3D SOFTWARE MANUAL

4.1 INTRODUCTION

The telecommunication always tries to reach the best performances, the

reliability and the efficiency with the lowest possible costs. In this domain, antennas
establish a basic element allowing the transmission of the electromagnetic waves in
free space. We find several types of antennas which different by cuts, geometrical
shape, capacity of transmission.
The first chapter presents a generality of antenna fundamentals, concerning
their characteristics and mechanism of radiation. Second chapter briefly described the
patch antenna and third chapter also discussed the microwave frequency.
So, an outline on the various techniques allowing increasing the bandwidth of
microstrip antennas.This paper presents the simulation of a rectangular patch antenna,
by using the software IE3D. Now i explained the IE3D software manual.

4.2 TUTORIAL OF IE3D SOFTWARE:

In this brief tutorial, we use IE3D to simulate a KU (12-18 GHz) band for
microstrip patch antenna. In this tutorial we are not concerned about the design of
this antenna and we will focus our attention on using IE3D to simulate the structure
and obtain its parameters. The tutorial is organized in a number of steps, which must
be followed in sequence to obtain best results.
1) Run Zeland Program Manager. You will see a layout similar to that shown in
Figure 3.1.

Figure 4.1: Zeland Program Manager.

54
2) Run MGRID by clicking on the MGRID button ( ) shown in Figure 4.1. MGRID
is the main interface of IE3D, in which you can draw the layout of the circuit to be
simulated. Notice that all the fields are empty
3) Click the new button as shown in Figure 3.2 ( ).
4) The basic parameter definition window pops up. You should see something similar
to Figure 4.3. In this window you can define basic parameters of the simulation such
as the dielectric constant of different layers, the units and layout dimensions, and
metal types among other parameters. In “Substrate Layer” section note that two layers
are automatically defined. At z=0, the program automatically places an infinite
ground plane (note the material conductivity at z = 0) and a second layer is defined at
infinity with the dielectric constant of 1.

Figure 4.2: Main View of MGRID

5) In the basic parameter definition window, click on “New Dielectric Layer” button (
) as is shown in Figure 4.3 You will see a window similar to the one shown in Figure
4.4. Enter the basic dielectric parameters in this window:
a. Top surface, Ztop: Enter the z dimension of the top surface. In this case, it is 1.6
mm. 62
b. Dielectric Constant: This field represents the dielectric constant of the layer. Enter
4.4 here for the dielectric constant.
55
 Figure 4.3 Basic Parameter Definitions.

Figure 4.4: Defining the Parameters of the Antenna Substrate

6) The next step is to draw the antenna and the layout. In this case we will use a
rectangular patch, fed with a simple microstrip line.

56
 7) First, we will draw a rectangle with the length of 10 mm and width of 6 mm. We
can draw the layout manually or use the available scripts to draw them. In this case,
we will draw them using the scripts. Click on the rectangle script button shown in
Figure 4.6. ( ). Enter 10 for Length and 6 for width as shown in Figure 4.6. and
click OK. Now your layout should look like Figure 4.7.

Figure 4.5: Layout View of the Problem after the Definition of the Dielectric Layers

Figure 4.6: Drawing a rectangular patch

57
 Figure 4.7: Rectangular patch

Figure 4.8: View Option of MGRID

58
8) The next step is to draw the rest of the structure. And also show the picture wide
screen or wide structure, and also short identification “W”. Your screen should look
like Figure 4.8.
9) Suppose draw any vertex in above rectangular entity, than Press Shift+R. The
“Keyboard Input Relative Location” menu pops up. Now that you have entered the
absolute location of the first vertex, you can use that as a reference point and enter the
location of additional vertices relative to the one entered previously.
10) Press the “Select Polygon” button shown in ( ). The shape of mouse cursor
changes from the cross “+” to the ordinary mouse cursor.
11) Press, Ctrl+C to copy the object and Ctrl+V to paste it.The outline of the object to
be pasted is drawn and as you move the mouse, it will move as well. You can move
the cursor to the paste point coordinates and click on the left button. You can also
click anywhere on the screen. The “Copy Object Offset to Original” menu pops up. In
this menu, you can enter the coordinates of the paste location.
12.) Figure 4.10 showing the rectanglization.
13) Figure 4.11 showing the basic parameters to be defined and Figure 4.13 shows the
editing of substrate layers.
14) Figure 4.14 showing the save the main picture or main figure, for microstrip patch
antenna.

Figure 4.9: Entering the X and Y value

59
Figure 4.10: Rectanglization

Figure 4.11: Basic Parameters

60
 Figure 4.12: Defining the basic parameters

Figure 4.13: Editing the No.0 Substrate layer

61
 Figure 4.14: Saving main figure
15) Figure 4.14 showing the simulation the frequency, before or after also create the
meshing frequency.
16) Here you can specify the simulation frequency points as well as the basic
parameters of the mesh. Click on Enter button in the Frequency parameters field.
Enter 1 in the “Start Freq (GHz)” field, 2 at the “End Freq (GHz)” field, 20 and 500 in
the “Number of Freq” field and click OK. Figure 4.15 shows.

Figure 4.15(a): process of simulation

62
17) In this menu, you have to specify the highest frequency that the structure will be
simulated at. Enter 20 in the “Highest Frequency” field. In this case, the operating
frequency is 2.4 GHz. Therefore choosing 3 GHz as the maximum frequency should
be OK. Enter 30 in the “Cells per Wavelength” field. The number of cells/wave length
determines the density of the mesh. In method of moment simulations, you should not
use fewer than 10 cells per wavelength. The higher the number of cells per
wavelength, the higher the accuracy of the simulation. However, increasing the
number of cells increases the total simulation time and the memory required for
simulating the structure. In many simulations using 20 to 30 cells per wavelength
should provide enough accuracy. However, this cannot usually be generalized and is
different in each problem; press OK, a new window pops up that shows the statistics
of the mesh; press OK again and the structure will be meshed.
18) Press OK and the structure will be simulated. The simulation progress window
shows the progress of the simulation. It will only take a couple of seconds for the
simulation to finish. After the simulation is completed.

Figure 4.15(b): Process Of Simulation

63
 Figure 4.15(c): Process Of Simulation
19) Now we have been see the frequency vs. dB graph. And also marked “marker
selection check box, marker” and show the frequency points in Figure 4.17.

Figure 4.16: Frequency Vs dB graph

20) The main figure also showing the display of S parameters in Figure 4.18.
21) This time, instead of simulating the structure from 2 GHz to 20 GHz, we will only
simulate it at Figure 4.17 marked frequency points, which is the frequency of
operation of the antenna.

64
 Enter the frequency of simulation in the “Frequency Parameters” field. Enter
this new number in the “Meshing Parameters” field, as shown in Figure 4.19. Make
sure that the “Current Distribution File” check box is checked and uncheck the
“Adaptive Intelli-Fit” Check Box. Also make sure that the “Radiation Pattern File”
check box is not checked. If you check this box, IE3D calculates the radiation pattern
of the structure. However, we will first examine the current distribution on the surface
of the antenna and then we will calculate the radiation patterns of the structure from
the calculated current distribution of the antenna. Your simulation setup window
should look like the one presented in Figure4.19.
22) Press OK to simulate the structure. Note that it will take a considerably longer
time to simulate the structure.

Figure 4.17: S-parameters

65
Figure 4.18: Meshing parameters & frequency parameters

Figure 4.19: Pattern view

66
 Figure 4.20: 3D Pattern View

23) After simulation we see the pattern view showing in the Figure 4.19. Next the 2D
pattern, 3D pattern, Polar plot, Cartesian plot are show using this pattern view.
24) Figure 4.20 show the, how remain 3D pattern view.

67
 CHAPTER -5
MICROSTRIP PATCH ANTENNA DESIGN RESULTS

In this chapter, the procedure for designing a Microstrip patch antenna is

explained. Next, a compact Microstrip patch antenna is designed for use in microwave
applications. Finally, the results obtained from the simulations are defined in detail.
5.1 INTRODUCTION
Microstrip patch antennas are becoming increasingly useful because they can
be printed directly onto a circuit board. Microstrip patch antennas are becoming very
widespread within the specifically electronics market. Patch antennas are low cost,
have a low profile and are easily fabricated.
The patch antenna, microstrip transmission line and ground plane are made of
high conductivity metal (typically copper). The patch is of length L, width W, and
sitting on top of a substrate (some dielectric circuit board) of thickness h with
permittivity r. The thickness of the ground plane or of the microstrip is not critically
important. Typically the height h is much smaller than the wavelength of operation,
but not much smaller than 0.05 of a wavelength.
UWB is a short range unlicensed wireless communication system which has a
potential to offer high capacity with low power compared with the contemporary
wireless systems for short range applications. After the release of UWB for
unlicensed application by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), it
receives much much lower than the resonant frequency of the conventional printed
antenna with the same patch area. Attention by researchers due to its inherent
properties of low power consumption, high data rate and simple configuration. With
the rapid developments of UWB systems, a lot of attention is being given to designing
the UWB antennas. The design of antennas for UWB applications must satisfy the
following requirements. They are ultra wide impedance bandwidth, omni-directional
radiation pattern, constant gain high radiation efficiency, constant group delay, low
profile and easy manufacturing. Interestingly the planar slot antennas with CPW fed
posses the features mentioned above with simple structure, less radiation loss, less
dispersion and easy integration of monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMIC).
Hence, the CPW fed planar slot antennas are identified as the most promising antenna
design for wideband wireless applications.

68
 In planar slot antennas, the slot width and feed structure affect the impedance
bandwidth of the antenna. The wider slot gives more bandwidth, and the optimum
feed structure gives good impedance matching. The CPW feed line with various
possible patch shapes available in the literature such as `T', cross, fork like, volcano
and square are used to give wideband width. The simulation software used for this
analysis is IE3D. In this chapter, a compact size microstrip patch antenna is proposed
with dielectric substrate as r=4.4 and dimensions are base on resonant frequency.
Various attempts are made to adjust the dimensions of the patch to improve the
parameters like return loss, VSWR, gain, directions, radiation pattern in 2-D and 3-
D, axial ratio, E and H Field Distributions, Current Distributions using Zeland
Software Inc. IE3D.
5.2 ANTENNA DESIGN SPECIFICATIONS
The configuration of the conventional printed antenna is shown in Figure 5.1
with L=6 mm, W=10 mm, substrate (PTFE) thickness h = 1.6 mm, dielectric constant
εr = 4.4.
The three essential parameters for the design of a rectangular Microstrip Patch
Antenna are:
• Frequency of operation (f0): The resonant frequency of the antenna must be
selected appropriately. The Personal Communication System (PCS) uses the
frequency range from 1850-1990 MHz. Hence the antenna designed must be able
to operate in this frequency range. The resonant frequency selected for my design
are f1=1.086GHz and f2=10GHz.
• Dielectric constant of the substrate (r): The dielectric material selected for my
design is Silicon which has a dielectric constant of 4.4. A substrate with a high
dielectric constant has been selected since it reduces the dimensions of the
antenna.
• Height of dielectric substrate (h): For the microstrip patch antenna to be used in
cellular phones, it is essential that the antenna is not bulky. Hence, the height of
the dielectric substrate is selected as 1.6 mm.
Hence, the essential parameters required for the design of slotted antenna are:
• f1= 1.086 GHz and f2=10 GHz
• r = 4.4
• h = 1.6 mm

69
5.3 ANTENNA STRUCTURE
The structure of the proposed antenna is shown in Fig.5.1. Also the structure
of proposed antenna 2 is shown in fig. 5.2. In this study, a dielectric substance (FR4)
with thickness of 1.6mm and a relative permittivity of 4.4 is chosen as substrate. The
CPW feed is designed for 50 Ω characteristic impedance. Both the antenna structures
are same but the only difference is that there is a change in feeding techniques. In
proposed antenna we use a transmission line feed and proposed antenna we use a
CPW feed.
The proposed antenna produces ultra wide bandwidth with omni-directional
radiation pattern. The wide bandwidth and impedance matching with reduced size of
the antenna is achieved due to resultant of different surface magnetic currents.

Figure 5.1: 3-D Top View of Proposed Antenna

Figure 5.2: 3-D Bottom View of Proposed Antenna

70
 Figure 5.3: 3-D Side View of Proposed Antenna

Figure 5.4: Current Distribution pattern for proposed antenna

Now, after the simulation antenna showing the total current distribution and
substrate in the above figure5.4.

71
 Figure 5.5: Current Distribution Pattern of Side View For Proposed Antenna
5.4 SIMULATION SETUP AND RESULTS
The software used to model and simulate the microstrip patch antenna is Zeland
Inc’s IE3D software. IE3D is a full-wave electromagnetic simulator based on the
method of moments. It analyzes 3D and multilayer structures of general shapes. It has
been widely used in the design of MICs, RFICs, patch antennas, wire antennas, and
other RF/wireless antennas. It can be used to calculate and plot the S11 parameters,
VSWR, current distributions as well as the radiation patterns. An evaluation version
of the software was used to obtain the results for this thesis.
5.5 SIMULATED RETURN LOSS
The center frequency is selected as the one at which the return loss is
minimum. In this section, various parametric analyses of the antenna which are
inevitable for any UWB antennas are carried out and presented. The analysis and
optimization were performed for the best impedance bandwidth. The simulated return
loss of the proposed antenna 1 is shown in Figure 5.5(a), Figure 5.5(b) where as the
return loss of proposed antenna 2 is shown in Figure 5.6. The return loss of proposed
antenna 1 with parasitic element is shown in fig 5.7 From fig. 5.8, it is clearly
indicates that the impedance bandwidth of the antenna 2 is 812.75 MHz (6.70 GHz-
7.51GHz) for a return loss (S11) less than -10dB, whereas antenna 1 gives the better
result for any microwave communication.
Simulated (using IE3D [10]) results of return loss in simulated antenna
structures are shown in below figures also showing the calculated value given below.
For proposed antenna 1, we achieve a band-width of 10 GHz is much higher than the
proposed antenna 2 and acts as a UWB antenna.

72
 Figure 5.6 (a): Return loss of antenna structure

Figure 5.6 (b): Combined Return loss of antenna structure

73
5.6 SIMULATED VSWR(VOLTAGE STANDING WAVE RATIO)
For the entire range of frequency achieved in designed antenna 1 are within
the range of VSWR. So we are achieved 2:1 VSWR for the entire frequency and we
show the VSWR in figure 5.7

Figure 5.7: VSWR of antenna with transmission line feed.

5.7 SIMULATED RADIATION PATTERN DIAGRAMS (2D AND 3D)

The simulated E-plane radiation patterns (2-D) and (3-D) for proposed antenna
are shown in the figures below.
The E-plane radiation patterns are taken across different center frequencies
i.e., at f1=1 GHz, f2=3.66 GHz, f3=4.93 GHz, f4=4.98 GHz, f5=5.63 GHz, f6=8.19
GHz, f7=8.36 GHZ,f8=10GHz.

74
 5.7.1 2D Radiation Patterns

Figure 5.8: E-Plane 2-D radiation pattern Figure 5.9:E-plane radiation pattern with
with transmission line feed at f=1 GHz transmission line feed at f=3.66GHz

Figure 5.10:E-plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.11: E-Plane 2-D radiation

pattern with transmission line feed pattern with transmission line feed at
atf=4.93GHz f=4.98GHz

75
 Figure 5.12: E-Plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.13: E-Plane 2-D radiation
pattern with transmission line feed at pattern with Transmission line feed at
f=5.63 GHz f=8.19GHz.

Figure 5.15: E-Plane 2-D radiation

Figure 5.14: E-Plane 2-D radiation pattern
pattern with transmission line feed at
with transmission line feed at f=8.36GHz
f=10GHz

76
Figure 5.16: H-Plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.17: H-Plane 2-D radiation
pattern with transmission line feed at f=1 pattern with transmission line feed at
GHz f=3.36 GHz

Figure 5.18:H-plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.19: H-Plane 2-D radiation

pattern with transmission line feed pattern with transmission line feed at
atf=4.93GHz f=4.98GHz

77
 Figure 5.20: H-Plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.21: H-Plane 2-D radiation
pattern with transmission line feed at pattern with Transmission line feed at
f=5.63 GHz f=8.19GHz.

Figure 5.22: H-Plane 2-D radiation Figure 5.23: H-Plane 2-D radiation
pattern with transmission line feed at pattern with transmission line feed at
f=8.36GHz f=10GHz

78
5.8.2 3D Radiation Patterns

Figure 5.24: 3-D radiation pattern Figure 5.25: 3-D radiation pattern
with transmission line feed at f=1 with transmission line feed at f=3.66
GHz GHz

Figure 5.26: 3-D radiation pattern Figure 5.27: 3-D radiation pattern
with transmission line feed at f=4.93 with transmission line feed at f=4.98
GHz GHz

79
 Figure 5.28: 3-D radiation pattern with Figure 5.29: 3-D radiation pattern with
transmission line feed at f= 5.36GHz transmission line feed at f=8.19GHz

Figure 5.30: 3-D radiation pattern with Figure 5.31: 3-D radiation pattern with
transmission line feed at f= 8.36GHz transmission line feed at f= 10GHz

80
5.8 DESIGN & SIMULATED PARAMETERS
All the simulated results based on return loss and radiation pattern are summarized in

the following tables.

Table 5.1 : Simulated results for proposed antenna with respect to return loss (All feeds are
active)

Table 5.2: Simulated results for proposed antenna with respect to return loss (one feed active and
others parasitic patch)

Table 5.3 Simulated results for proposed antenna with respect to VSWR (All feeds are
active)

81
Table 5.4 Simulated results for proposed antenna with respect to radiation pattern (Allfeeds
are active)

Table 5.5 Simulated results for proposed antenna with respect to radiation pattern (one feed
active and others parasitic patch)

82
 CHAPTER 6
CONCLUSION & FUTURE SCOPE OF WORK
6.1 CONCLUSION
Theoretical investigations of a dual layer single feed miniaturized micro strip
printed antennas have been carried out using Method of Moment based software
IE3D. Introducing slots at the edge of the left and right side of patch with adding slot
from top layer and cutting slots from the bottom layer, we achieved a maximum
return loss of about -32.37 at 5.63 GHz with a wide bandwidth of 2.66 GHz. Also we
achieved maximum 3dB beam-width of the radiation pattern is 281.360 which is
sufficiently broad beam for the applications for which it is intended. So lastly we
conclude that the proposed antenna is good when all the feeds are active at same time
rather one feed is active and others acts as a parasitic patch. Also it is require
mentioning that we achieved the proposed antenna VSWR within 2:1 range. So, the
proposed antenna is a good candidate for the application of mobile communication,
satellite communication, S-Band and C-band communication.
6.2 FUTURE SCOPE OF WORKS
In future microstrip antennas for applications like RFID and several bio-
medical uses are expected to be researched. Different types of microstrip antennas
have been designed in this thesis. In future planar microstrip antennas on curved
surface with variable radii of curvature may be investigated. They may be compared
with the planar antennas. Successful design of curved surface MSA (Micro-Strip
Antenna) may be helpful in Body-mounted applications.
Now fabrication of the microstrip antennas using paper based materials is
attempted. This new type of fabrication process is in a developing stage. Antennas
fabricated in the thesis may be fabricated by paper materials using proposed new
technique in future. It may be helpful in bio-medical application.
Researchers are also trying to develop microstrip antenna using semiconductor
substrates.

83
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