volume | PIER Journals

Abstract

A compact, gain-enhanced, linearly tapered slot antenna (LTSA) with hook-shaped slots in the ground plane and a combined director, consisting of a metallic strip director and double-sided metamaterial (DS-MTM) loading surrounding it, is proposed for ultra wide band (UWB) applications. Hook-shaped slots are appended in the ground plane for miniaturization, whereas a combination of the metallic strip and DS-MTM loading placed above the LTSA is used for gain enhancement. Performance of the proposed combined director is compared with other commonly used director configurations in the literature, such as single strip director, two strip directors, and two-layers of DS-MTM. It was found that gain enhancement effect of the proposed combined director is the greatest over the UWB band, compared to other director configurations. The fabricated prototype of the proposed antenna operates from 2.83 GHz to 11.31 GHz (119.9%) for a voltage standing wave ratio less than 2 with moderate gain of 3.2-7.5 dBi. The dimensions of the proposed LTSA in terms of the free space wavelength at the lowest frequency (λ₀) are 0.28λ₀ × 0.30λ₀ × 0.0075λ₀ (30 mm × 32 mm × 0.8 mm), which are very compact.

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Prof. Junho Yeo