Lecture

on

ANTENNA MINIATURIZATION
TECHNIQUES

By
Dr. Sarthak Singhal

1
 CONTENTS
• Introduction to Antenna
• Various antenna miniaturization techniques
• References

2
 Introduction to Antenna
• Interface between the guiding
device and space
• Transducer
• Passive device
• Reciprocal

3
 Types of Antennas
• Wire Antenna
• Aperture Antenna
• Reflector Antenna
• Microstrip Antenna
• Array Antenna
• Lens Antenna

4
5
6
7
 Basic Principles of Operation
 The basic principles are illustrated here for a rectangular patch,
but the principles apply similarly for other patch shapes.

 We use the cavity model to explain the operation of the patch

antenna.
z

h n̂

PMC

Y. T. Lo, D. Solomon, and W. F. Richards, “Theory and Experiment on Microstrip Antennas,” IEEE
Trans. Antennas Propagat., vol. AP-27, no. 3 (March 1979): 137–145.

8
 Basic Principles of Operation

 The patch acts approximately as a resonant cavity (with

short-circuit (PEC) walls on top and bottom, open-
circuit (PMC) walls on the edges).

 In a cavity, only certain modes are allowed to exist, at

different resonance frequencies.

 If the antenna is excited at a resonance frequency, a

strong field is set up inside the cavity, and a strong
current on the (bottom) surface of the patch. This
produces significant radiation (a good antenna).

9
A microstrip antenna can radiate well, even with a thin substrate.

 As the substrate gets thinner the patch current radiates less, due
to image cancellation (current and image are separated by 2h).
 However, the Q of the resonant cavity mode also increases,
making the patch currents stronger at resonance.
These two effects cancel, allowing the patch to radiate well
even for thin substrates (though the bandwidth decreases).
z

r Js h
x

10
 Antenna Miniaturization
• Overall size reduction, no effect on bandwidth
• Wide bandwidth, same size

Need of Antenna Miniaturization

• Compact communication devices
• Integration of additional circuitry

Basic Methods of Antenna Miniaturization

• change the material properties of substrate such that the
effective wavelength in the substrate region is decreased
• change its geometry in such a way so as to increase the
electrical size (current path) 11
 Miniaturization Techniques
• Different Substrate Materials
• Shorting and Folding
• Different radiating antenna geometries
• Different ground plane geometries
• Use of Metamaterials

M. U. Khan, M. S. Sharawi, and R. Mittra, “Microstrip patch antenna miniaturisation techniques: a review,” IET Microwaves, Antennas &
Propagation, vol. 9, no. 9, pp. 913–922, 2015.
12
 • Cavity model equation
for dominant mode of
patch antenna:
 f r 010  1
2L 

Theoretical lower bound on the antenna Q for a small

antenna enclosed in a sphere of radius a#
1 1
Q 
ka ka3

Sievenpiper, D., Dawson, D., Jacob, M., et al.: ‘Experimental validation of performance limits and design guidelines for small antennas’, IEEE
Trans. Antennas Propag., 2012, 60, (1), pp. 8–19 13
 Different Substrate Materials
• Substrate with a high relative permittivity (ɛr):
1
L or W 1
r r
– increased surface wave excitation
– lower bandwidth & decreased radiation efficiency
– costly substrates
• Magneto-dielectric material having high relative
permeability:
– No effect on bandwidth or bandwidth enhancement is
there
14
 Shorting or Folding

Figure (a) Field distribution of the fundamental TM10 mode of RMSA and
(b) shorted λ/4 RMSA.

15
 Shorting or Folding
• For a λ/2 RMPA,
– Sinusoidal distribution of E-field: maximum at
radiating edges and zero at middle
– Same resonance frequency if an electrical wall is
places at middle and half is removed
– λ/4 MPA
– Same Q but D & G reduce due to antenna aperture
• Electrical wall: (Inductive in nature)
– Metallic plate (difficult)
– Shorting pin array placed together
• Geometry gets complex
• Effects the efficiency
16
17
• Basic RMSA is represented as parallel RLC

1
fr 
L1C1

• Shorted RMSA LS  L1
LT 
LT LS
1
f r1   fr
LT C1
18
 Folding
• Planar Inverted L and F-antenna
– Same resonance but less overall dimensions
– Radiator is folded instead of additional shorting
wall
– Non-planar and complex geometry
– Same effects as for shorting wall

19
20
Different radiating antenna geometries
• Monopole
• Fractal
• Notch Loading
• Meander Line
• Laminated Conductor
– A miniaturised MPA: higher ohmic losses
– lower radiation efficiency
– Laminated layers of conductors: equal total thickness
– number of conducting layers is increased : gain and
efficiency improved
21
 MONOPOLE ANTENNA
1. Quarter wavelength microstrip patch or single pole, so
monopole
2. Partial ground plane microstrip antenna
3. Microstrip line or Coplanar Waveguide feeding
4. Advantages:
i. Wider impedance bandwidth
ii. Easy to fabricate
iii. Good radiation characteristics
5. Good candidate for short range high speed data
communications
6. Various radiating patch shapes have been investigated

22
 FRACTAL ANTENNA
• Fractal concept given by B.B Mandelbrot[2].
• A set of geometry : non-traditional shapes, self-similar, can be geometric or
statistical.
• Fractals as Space-filling Geometries
 Electrically long curves in less space
 Miniaturized antenna elements
• Fractals as Miniaturized Antennas
 Effective space coverage than traditional Euclidean antenna.
 Effective energy coupling from feed to free space
• Fractals as Multiband Antennas
 Overall structure: series of repetition of a single geometry at different scale.
 Higher scaling factor for more operating bands within lower spectrum

B.B.Mandelbrot, “The Fractal Geometry of Nature,” W.H. Freeman, New York, 1983.
23
 FRACTAL GEOMETRIES

Rectangular tree
shaped
Pythagorean tree
fractal
Hilbert curve
24
Circular Microstrip Patch
 ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES
Feature Advantage Benefit
Wideband/multiband Instantaneous spectrum access Use one antenna instead of many
Compact More design and use versatility Lowers cost and enhances
desirability
Fractal loading Added inductance and Enables small, efficient, reliable
capacitance without components antennas
Fractal ground Smaller, multiband Greater versatility, new packaging
plane/counterpoise options
Frequency Consistent performance over Fractal solutions open up
Independent huge frequency range previously unknown options
Low Mutual Coupling Close packing of antennas Small arrays with excellent steer
ability
DISADVANTAGES : 1. Less gain
2. Complexity
3. Numerical limitations
4. The benefits begin to diminish after three iterations, 25
 NOTCH LOADING AND MEANDER LINE
• Electrical length enhancement
• Confined in a compact area
• Inductive or capacitive coupling for bandwidth
enhancement
• Electromagnetic coupling may cause notch
characteristics
• Fabrication accuracy is must
Initial length= 4L
Final length=
4L+2W

f1<f2
26
27
 Different Ground Structures
• Conventionally infinite ground plane
• finite ground plane: larger than patch
– poor polarisation purity
– affects the input impedance
– edge diffraction: significant back lobe radiation ->
decreases the front-to-back ratio.
• Slot loading of the ground plane
– increase the current path within the patch area
– Lower resonance i.e. size reduced
• irregular ground structure
28
• Defected Ground Structure
– improves radiation characteristics
– isolation in MIMO/array antenna designs
– impedance matching of microstrip feed designs
– lower efficiency
– narrower operating bandwidths
• Complementary SRR (CSRR) etched from
ground plane

29
 Use of Metamaterials
• Artificially engineered materials: properties
not readily available
– zero values of permittivity
– negative permittivity (ENG) or permeability
(MNG)
– both negative permittivity and permeability (DNG)
– MTM-based antennas: use of ENG, MNG or DNG
substrate
– MTM-inspired antennas: utilise the MTM unit cell
such as the SRR, CSRR, omega structures etc.

30
• Combination of DNG and DPS substrates is
used
– patch miniaturization: depends on ratios of
area filled by the DNG and DPS media and
their properties.
– Higher miniaturization
– limited bandwidth
– low efficiency
– complex antenna geometry

31
32
 REFERENCES
1. M. U. Khan, M. S. Sharawi, and R. Mittra, “Microstrip patch antenna miniaturisation
techniques: a review,” IET Microwaves, Antennas & Propagation, vol. 9, no. 9, pp.
913–922, 2015.
2. L. Huitema and T. Monediere (2014). Compact Antennas — An overview, Progress in
Compact Antennas, Dr. Laure Huitema (Ed.), InTech, DOI: 10.5772/58837. Available
from: https://www.intechopen.com/books/progress-in-compact-antennas/compact-
antennas-an-overview
3. B.B.Mandelbrot, “The Fractal Geometry of Nature,” W.H. Freeman, New York, 1983.
4. K.-L. Wong, Compact and Broadband Microstrip Antennas. John Wiley & Sons, 2002.
5. A. Mishra, P. Singh, N. P. Yadav, J. A. Ansari, and B. R. Vishvakarma, “Compact
Shorted Microstrip Patch Antenna For Dual Band Operation,” Progress In
Electromagnetics Research C, vol. 9, pp. 171–182, 2009.
6. C. A. Balanis, Antenna theory analysis and design. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2016.

33
THANK YOU

34