AN APERTURE-COUPLED MICROSTRIP ANTENNA WITH

RECONFIGURABLE RADIATION PATTERN

PREPARED BY:

DR. MOHD TARMIZI ALI

DR. MOHD KHAIRUL MOHD SALLEH
PN. SUHAILA SUBAHRI
PN SUZILAWATI MUHAMUD@KAYAT

JULY 2012

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Table of Contents
LETTER OF REPORT SUBMISSION

LETTER OF OFFER (RESEARCH GRANT)

iii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

iii

PROPOSED EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

iv

CHAPTER REPORT
1.

INTRODUCTION

2.

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1.
2.1.1.
2.2.

Reconfigurable Microstrip Antennas

Frequency Reconfigurable Microstrip Antennas

Antenna Feeding Techniques

3.

METHODOLOGY

4.

ANTENNA STRUCTURE

5.

4.1.

Elliptical Microstrip Patch Antenna

4.2.

E-Shaped Microstrip Patch Antenna

4.3.

Rectangular Patch Antenna

4.4.

Reconfigurable Microstrip Patch Antenna

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

5.1

Effect on Aperture Slot

5.2

Effect on Patch Slot

10

5.3

Effect on Patch Shape

12

5.4

Effect on Orientations of Patch Slot.

13

5.5

Reconfigurable Single Patch Antenna

15

6.

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

17

7.

RESEARCH OUTCOMES

18

8.

REFERENCES

19

9.

APPENDIX

21

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LETTER OF REPORT SUBMISSION

Tarikh :

11 Junel2012

No. Fail Projek :

600-RMI/ST/DANA 5/3Dst (366/2011)

Penolong Naib Canselor (Penyelidikan)

Institut Penyelidikan, Pembangunan dan Pengkomersilan
Universiti Teknologi MARA
40450 Shah Alam

Ybgh. Prof.,
LAPORAN AKHIR PENYELIDIKAN "AN APERTURE-COUPLED MICROSTRIP
ANTENNA WITH RECONFIGURABLE RADIATION PATTERN"

Merujuk kepada perkara di atas, bersama-sama ini disertakan dua naskah Laporan Akhir
Penyelidikan
bertajuk
"An
Aperture-Coupled
Microstrip
Antenna
With
Reconfigurable Radiation Pattern".

Sekian, terima kasih.

Yang benar,

DR. MOHD TARMIZI ALI

Ketua Projek Penyelidikan

DR MOHD KHAIRpL IVJ0flDxSALLEH

Ahli Projek

SUHAILASOlAHRI
Ahli Projek

<*5'

SUZILAWATI MUHAMUD@KAYAT
Ahli Projek
i

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LETTER OF OFFER (RESEARCH GRANT)

Surat Kami
Tarikh

UNIVERSITI
TEKNOLOGI
MARA

PEMENANG

: 600-RMI/ST/DANA 5/3/Dst (SC& /2011)

': J^Julai2011

Anugerah Kuaiiti mm
Peraana Menteri W

^
fk
kJ

2QQ8Vv

Dr Mohd Tarmizi All

Fakulti Kejuruteraan Eiektrik
Universiti Teknologi MARA
40450 Shah Alam
Y. Brs. Profesor/Tuan/Puan
KELULUSAN PERMOHONAN DANA KECEMERLANGAN 07/2011
An Aperture-Coupled Microstrip Antenna with Reconfigurable Radiation
Tajuk Projek
Pattern
600-RMI/ST/DANA 5/3/Dst (&&C /2011)
Kod Projek
Kategori G (2011)
Kategori Projek
01 Ogos 2011 - 31 Julai 2013 (24 bulan)
Tempoh
RM 10,000.00
Jumlah Peruntukan
Dr Mohd Tarmizi Ali
Ketua Projek
Dengan hormatnya perkara di atas adalah dirujuk.
2.
Sukacita dimaklumkan pihak Universiti telah meluluskan cadangan penyelidikan
Y. Brs Profesor/tuan/puan untuk membiayai projek penyelidikan di bawah Dana Kecemerlangan
UiTM.
3.
Bagi pihak Universiti kami mengucapkan tahniah kepada Y. Brs. Profesor/tuan/puan kerana
kejayaan ini dan seterusnya diharapkan berjaya menyiapkan projek ini dengan cemerlang.
4.
Peruntukan kewangan akan disalurkan melalui tiga (3) peringkat berdasarkan kepada
laporan kemajuan serta kewangan yang mencapai perbelanjaan lebih kurang 50% dari peruntukan
yang diterima.
Peringkat Pertama
20%
Peringkat Kedua
40%
Peringkat Ketiga
40%
5.
Untuk tujuan mengemaskini, pihak Y. Brs. Profesor/tuan/puan adalah diminta untuk
melengkapkan semula kertas cadangan penyelidikan sekiranya perlu, mengisi borang setuju terima
projek penyelidikan dan menyusun perancangan semula bajet yang baru seperti yang diluluskan. Sila
lihat lampiran bagi tatacara tambahan untuk pengurusan projek.
Sekian, harap maklum.
"SELAMAT MENJALANKAN PENYELIDIKAN DENGAN JAYANYA"
Yang benar

PROFESOR DRABU BAKAR ABDUL MAJEED

Penolong Nailreanselor (Penyelidikan)
Penolong
Bahagian
Bahagian
Bahagian

Naib d K t e l o r (Penyelidikan) .603- 5544 2094/2095

Penyelidikan :603 5544 2097/2091/2101/5521 1462
Perundingan ;603-5544 2100/2787/2092/2093
Inovasi .603-5544 2750/2747/2748

i
|
j
]

Bahagian P e n e r b i t a n 603 5544 1425/2785

Bahagian Sokongan ICT :603-5544 3097/2 104/5521
Bahagian Sains :603-5544 2098 /5521 1463
Pejabat A m :603-5544 2 5 5 9 / 2 0 5 7 / 5 5 2 1 1636

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P e n o l o n g P e n t a d b i r a n .603-5544 2090
Fax
; 603 5544 2096/2767
U n i t K e w a n g a n Z o n 17 :603-5544 3404
:603-5521 1386

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

In preparing this report, I have been in contact with many people, researchers,
academicians, and practitioners who have contributed towards my understanding and
thoughts. First of all, I wish to express my sincere appreciation to my project member, En
Mohd Nor Md Tan, Pn Suhaila Subahri and Pn

Suzilawati Muhamud@Kayat for their

continuous effort, patience and guidance in providing invaluable ideas, encouragement and
exceptional role they have played in making this project a reality. Besides, I would like to
acknowledge research fund as our research was supported in part by them under 600RMI/ST/DANA 5/3Dst (366/2011). I am most grateful to Research Management Institute
(RMI) for giving me the help needed throughout my reserach period in Faculty of Electrical
Engineering. I would also like to thank all the staffs of Center For Electronic Communication
Engineering Studies for giving me the opportunity that made my research possible.

Last but not least, my warmest appreciation to all my friends for their invaluable
friendship and encouragement all these years.

iii

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PROPOSED EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

In recent years as the technology evolves rapidly, it gives a significant impact on the
modern wireless communication systems.

As the most important components in any

communication systems, the antennas require operations in a number of frequency bands. A

reconfigurable antenna offers a great advantage over a conventional antenna with the ability
to operate at multiple frequencies.
A frequency reconfigurable microstrip antenna can be achieved by having one or
more slots with various shapes on the patch. The introduction of slots on the radiating patch
enables the antenna to have multi-frequency while maintaining the size of the radiating
elements. Thus, size reduction can be obtained for lower frequencies and overall
manufacturing costs can be reduced.
To achieve frequency ^configurability, a switch is inserted in the slot so that it
becomes switchable. In this research, the reconfigurable antenna can be operated at two
different frequencies by controlling the states of the PIN diode switches. On top of that, its
radiation pattern remains the same regardless of the frequency of operation.
In this particular research the proposed slotted antenna can be operated at dualfrequency with the same patch size. The benefit of this design is that the overall size of an
array antenna can be reduced while being able to operate at lower frequency which requires
bigger patch size.
This research will focus on two different operating frequencies of 5.8 GHz and a lower
frequency of 5.8GHz. The results from this research will be beneficial to the knowledge
domain of wireless communication systems, particularly in the applications of WiMAX.

iv

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1. INTRODUCTION
The development of reconfigurable microstrip antennas (RMAs) has received
significant attention in wireless communication systems in recent years. RMAs provide
numerous applications and offer more versatility as compared to conventional antennas.
Reconfigurable antennas have attractive features such as the ability to reconfigure
themselves independently to adapt to the changes or with the system to perform entirely
different functions. The reconfigurable antenna is also capable of providing a single antenna
for use with multiple systems.
In modern wireless communication systems, different wireless standards are
available for mobile communication. Therefore, it is not possible to equip a device with many
antennas of different frequency band. Multi frequency band antennas which can provide the
feature of multi-band reception would be highly demanded by the end-users. Thus, an
antenna with the ability to reconfigure its operating frequency is required.
The rapid advances in technology have also significantly resulted in high demand for
thin and compact devices including the antennas. To cope with this demand, small and
compact antennas can be considered to be the one of the key advances in future wireless
communications technology. However, the development of these antennas poses significant
challenges to antenna designers particularly. Therefore, the design of an antenna must not
only be focused on its functionality such as the capability to reconfigure but also the overall
size of the antenna structure without compromising its good characteristics performance.
In modern wireless communication systems, a reconfigurable microstrip antenna has
the flexibility for use in multiple applications by integrating appropriate switches into the
design. There are a few types of RF switches that can be integrated with the antenna to
achieve its reconfigurability. The most popular types that have been used in previous
researches are the PIN diodes [1]-[3] and micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) [4],[5]
switches.
In this research, the proposed antenna design would be have the capability to
reconfigure its operating frequency with a broad bandwidth in a compact size without
compromising its overall performance including the reduction of back lobe.

1
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2. LITERATURE REVIEW
2.1 Reconfigurable Antennas
Ideally, a reconfigurable microstrip antenna (RMA) is able to change its operating
frequency, radiation pattern and polarization independently to accommodate changing
operating requirements [6]. Reconfigurable antennas can provide diversity functions in
operating frequency, radiation pattern and polarization to mobile communication. A
reconfigurable antenna that concentrated on changing its radiation patterns while
maintaining its other characteristics is referred to as a radiation pattern reconfigurable
antenna [7]. Radiation pattern reconfigurable antennas can be classified into two
categories in which the overall performance of wireless communication systems can be
improved. The first category involves in varying the beam shape [8]; while the other
involves in controlling beam direction pattern [9].
2.1,1 Frequency Reconfigurable Antenna
Most reconfigurable systems concentrate on changing operating frequency while
maintaining radiation characteristics [19-21]. However, Manipulation of an antenna's
radiation pattern can be used to avoid noise sources or intentional jamming, improve
security by directing signals only toward intended users, serve as a switched diversity
system, and expand the beamsteering capabilities of large phased arrays. Researches on
both pattern and frequency reconfigurable antennas have been done to further enhance
the reconfigurable systems.
A novel ring antenna with pattern and frequency reconfigurability was proposed by
[10]. Three switches are used in the antenna to achieve different radiation patterns at two
different frequencies at 2.0 GHz and 2.4 GHz. However, other antenna characteristics
performance such as gain and return loss were not mentioned in the paper. Another
related study was done by [24], with a design of a single turn square spiral microstrip
antenna. However, the results seem to illustrate that the antenna is capable in both
pattern and frequency reconfigurabilities but not in simultaneous manner.

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2.2 Antenna Feeding Technique

The antenna feeding technique can be categorized into four : (a) coxial probe; (b)
Microstrip line; (c) aperture coupler and (d) proximity coupler.
/

a) Coaxial Probe

S*~ b) Microstrip line

c) Aperture Coupler

d) Proximity Coupler

Figure 1. Types of feeding technique (a) Coaxial Probe; (b) Microstrip Line; (c)
Aperture Coupler and (d) Proximity Coupler
Aperture coupler technique was first introduced by D.M Pozar [11],[12]. It can
be considered the best feeding technique, isolating the spurious feed radiation from
antenna element by a common ground plane with ease of input impedance matching.
Figure 1 shows an overview of a microstrip patch antenna design with aperture
coupler technique. The antenna is formed on a dielectric substrate above the ground
plane. The feed which consists of an open-ended microstrip line is located on a
separate dielectric substrate below the ground plane. These two structures are
electromagnetically coupled through an electrical small aperture in the ground plane
between them [13].

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3. METHODOLOGY
The main emphasis of this research is to design, and develop a reconfigurable
microstrip patch antenna. In order to achieve that, the research is divided into two; software
and hardware parts. The software part includes the antenna design process and its
simulations and also the switching circuit network design. Meanwhile, the hardware part
includes the fabrication of the proposed antenna. In this research, the designs are based on
aperture coupler feeding technique and the concept of PIN diodes has been used in the
switching circuit.
To start, a comprehensive review is required to obtain knowledge on antenna design.
The proposed antenna will be designed and simulated using CST Microwave Studio 2009. On
the other hand, switching circuit network will be designed using AWR. The design parameters
of both designs will be optimized to achieve optimal results. Finally, a prototype antenna will
be fabricated and a comparison will be made between simulation and measurement results.
Measurement results will be in terms of return loss and radiation pattern at different modes of
switch configurations.
The flow chart of the research methodology is shown in Figure 3.

START

~>

Literature review of reconfigurable

antennas

Parametric s t u d y of a single patch a n t e n n a :

i.Patch slot
ii. A p e r t u r e S l o t
iii. P a t c h S h a p e
Design- simulation, fabrication and m e a s u r e m e n t
single patch antenna
Design and integration with RF

switches
NO

leet t h e s p e c T t

YES
Design, simulation, fabrication and measurement
array antenna
Design and integration with RF

switches
NO

"ISleet the

YES

Figure 3.0: Flow chart of the research

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of

of

4. ANTENNA STRUCTURE
4.1 Elliptical Microstrip Patch Antenna
The slotted elliptical patch antenna for wideband communications proposed in this
paper is shown in Figure 4.1(a). The elliptical patch is designed with a major axis a=27mm,
and a minor axis b= 18mm (ellipticity ratio a/b=1.5), from which a rectangular region is carved
out. The prototype of the design is shown in Figure 4.1(b).
Wtub
45.0

Ellipse patch

Front View

Side View

Fig. 4.1(a) The structure of slotted elliptical antenna

Switch
it
'^uH^^HSr

\ HHB

'
(a i From View

(b) Front View

fc) Back View

Fig. 4.1(b) The prototype of the antenna structure

4.2 E-Shaped Microstrip Patch Antenna

The design geometry of the E-shaped patch antenna is shown in Figure 4.2. The
antenna is fed by a SMA connector positioned at (Wc/2,Lf)- The patch and ground are
separated by closed-cell low loss foam named PF-2 of thickness 3.2 mm.
,Vb 21.7 nun

Pafcft

Sub'ttfitH*

&o\.mtil

JL+

TGfkm

(t4.0B)

Fig. 4.2. The geometry of an E-shaped microstrip antenna.

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4.3 Rectangular Patch Antenna

The schematic diagram of the initial design is shown in Fig. 4.3(a) and the optimized
design parameters are tabulated in Table I. Next, a rectangular slot is inserted on to the
microstrip patch in two different orientations, horizontal and vertical as shown in Fig.4.3
(b).
w

\Va
4.
1J
wf

-n\

jt

Fig.4.3(a). The geometry ofinitial design of ACMSA

TABLE I. DESIGN PARAMETERS FOR INITIAL DESIGN OF ACMSA
Parameters

Width (mm)

Length (mm)

Patch (W, L)

37.4

22.3

Substrate (Wg, Lg)

60

60

Aperture Slot (Wa, La)

15.3

3.9

Feed Line (Wf, Lt)

3.86

31.5

Label

Dimension (mm)

Width

WsH

Length

LsH

x-axis

11.7

y-axis

Width

WsV1

Length

LsV1

14.5

x-axis

y-axis

Width

WsV2

Length

LsV2

16

x-axis

y-axis

Parameter

immJL

!1
jjS
w

n1
4

H-slot

V-slot,
Vs1

I1I
>:

V-slot,
Vs2

Fig. 4.3 (b) The orientations of a rectangular patch slot with different slot dimensions.

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4.4 Reconfigurable Microstrip Patch Antenna

The design of the proposed antenna was based on basic design of an aperture
coupled microstrip antenna (ACMSA). A comparison between two vertical slot lengths, Ls1
and Ls2 was done in three conditions: Ls1>Ls2, Ls1=Ls2 and Ls1<Ls2 (Figure 4.4(a)). Next,
an additional slot was integrated horizontally onto the patch. In this study, the horizontal slot
length was adjusted and optimized to get the best result. As shown on Figure 4.4(b), three
ideal switches (cooper strip) were then integrated into the horizontal slot.
SW1 SW3

faiofi

4 \

JY-axis
I
4

V^ixis

ui

i!

SW2

X~axis

X-axis

(a)

(b)

Figure 4.4 Positions of two vertical slots and one horizontal slot

Figure 4.5 Prototype of the antenna

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5. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

5.1 Parametric Study on Single Patch Antenna
A comprehensive parametric studies have been done to investigate the effects of
certain properties on the antenna. The studies include the effects on its aperture slot, patch
slot and patch shape.
5.1.1 Effect on Aperture Slot
A Return Loss, Sn
Fig. 5.1 shows the return losses (Sn) of a microstrip patch antenna with aperture
coupler technique in dB during optimization. Return loss is a convenient way to characterize
the input and output signal sources. S11 represents how much power is reflected from the
antenna. If Sn=0 dB, it shows that all power is reflected from the antenna and nothing is
radiated. The final design chosen from the optimization is indicated in purple (no.4) as the
return loss illustrates the largest value, -20.5743dB. Larger return loss indicates higher power
being radiated by the antenna which eventually increases the gain. In other word, the
increase in Sn shows that the antenna has a better reflection coefficient and power reaches
the load with minimal losses [25].
.-> i-y. rrt# ttMrbjfo n A

I
%

1*

[VI1

Fig. 5.1. Return losses from optimization process

B. Voltage Standing Wave Ratio, VSWR
The simulation result of Voltage Standing Wave Ratio, VSWR is shown in Fig.5.2
below. VSWR is an important specification for all microwave devices. It measures how well an
antenna is matched to the cable impedance where the reflection, |T| = 0. This means that all
power is transmitted to the antenna and there is no reflection [26]. The optimal VSWR is 1. By
referring to Fig. 5.2, at operating frequency 5.8GHz, the VSWR value obtained is 1.2065. It
shows that the antenna is near to perfect matching.

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E~B^

Fig. 5.2. Return losses from optimization process

C. Radiation Patterns
Fig. 5.3 illustrates the simulated radiation pattern in terms of gain of 3.846dB. Gain is
another measure to describe the performance of an antenna [27]. Aperture coupled microstrip
antenna is a special class of microstrip antennas with high gain and wide bandwidth [25].
However, the result in Fig. 5.3 indicates that the gain obtained can be considered as low. This
may be because the substrate used is FR-4 which has high tangent loss that will eventually
results in lower gain [28]. The antenna gain may also be related to the dimension of the patch
[25]. Fig. 5.3 depicts the simulated radiation pattern of a microstrip patch antenna with
aperture coupler technique. The simulation result shows the major lobe directed the signal at
0 with beamwidth (HPBW) of 118.2. Meanwhile, the front-to-back ratio is the difference in dB
between the level of the maximum radiation in the forward direction and the level of radiation
at 180 degrees which by referring to the figure, the value is 6.9dB.

Farfield 'farfield (f=5.8) [1]' Gain_Abs(Theta)

Type
Approximation
Monitor
Component
Output
Frequency
Rad . effic.
Tot- eFFic.
Gain

Farfield
enabled (kit >> 1)
farfield CF-5.8) [1
Abs
Gain
5.B
-1.53J* dB
-1-572 dB
3.846 dB

180
Frequency

= 5.8

Main lobe magnitude

Main lobe direction

=
=

3.8 dB
0.8 deg.

Angular width (3 dB] = 1 1 8.2 deg.

Side lobe l e v e l = -11.3 dB

(a) Radiation pattern in 3-D plot

(b) Radiation pattern in polar plot

Fig. 5.3. Simulation results on the effects of the aperture slot.

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5.1.2 Effect on Patch Slot

A Return Loss, Sn
Numerical simulations and measurements are conducted on the slotted elliptical
patch antenna with and without a switch. The simulation and optimization of the design is
done by commercial simulation software, CST Microwave Studio and Rohde & Schwarz
ZVA40 vector network analyzer is used for the impedance measurements.
The position of the slot is changed in order to see the antenna performance. The slot
is placed on the top, center and the bottom of the ellipse patch and the results are depicted in
Fig.5.4. Due to the fact that the current is mostly concentrated on the periphery of ellipse
patch and the current is lower at the center, hence the best position for the slot is at the
center of the patch as shown in Fig. 5.4(b). The performance of the antenna is not improved
even though the position of the slot is changed.

(a.} Antenna Structure

ib) Simulated Result

Fig. 5.4: The optimization of slot position

Hence, a modification for the slot has to be carried out in order to improve the
performance of the antenna. A switch is integrated into the slot and the position of the switch
is tuned (Fig.5.5) until the best results are determined. The simulation results from tuning the
switch position are illustrated in Fig.5.5(b). From the results it is observed that the best
position is when the switch is at 5mm from the right side of the slot. For comparison, the
slotted elliptical antenna without a switch is also shown. It is observed from the figure that
when a switch is introduced to the slot, the performance of return loss characteristic is better
and the bandwidth is wider. The simulation result of slotted elliptical antenna without a switch
shows that it has an impedance bandwidth for return loss less than -10 dB from 2.5 to 6.45
GHz. The value of return loss is -28.75 dB as illustrated in Fig.5.5(b). Meanwhile, the slotted
elliptical antenna with a switch shows that the impedance bandwidth is 2.4 to 6.85 GHz. The
return loss for this patch is value is -31.11 dB at resonance frequency of 3.97 GHz, which is
lower than of the slotted antenna without a switch.

10

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(a) Antenna Structure

i & * *&>* tf u-w. r*S* of-elm

$ w $*m * t h e ?i?jtii til BI>:>I

(b'| Simulated Result

Fig. 5.5: The optimization of switches position along the slot

Fig.5.6 depicts the return loss characteristics of both simulated and measured results
for slotted elliptical antenna with a switch. The return loss for measured result is slightly lower
as compared to the simulated result. On the other hand, the bandwidth of the measured
results is greater than simulated results. However, there is a slight discrepancy between the
measured and simulated return loss results in terms of frequency. The return loss for
measured result is slightly lower compared to simulation result in which value at 3.4 GHz is 39.09 dB and -38.03 dB at 5.44 GHz. There is also a disagreement between the measured
and simulated return loss results in terms of frequency. The inconsistency between simulation
and measured results are due to some factors that would affect the results such as
inappropriate handling during measurement process, soldering process and improper
fabrication process.
\1
1
0 -

VK

*-;

1 1
1 1
j |

0 -

in

i
i
i

.-jr, ,
i

\7

r %m

25

3D -

-35

simulation

Nv 1 1

15 -

20

CST

1 1
1 1
1 l

11\
11

f *

J^..,-*....

s*

;i *
i

-5 -

1f

*S1
r

---

>~

.,

1 1

^/^

X
V

yp1'

ii
11
11
II
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
11
2.4

2.5

4
Frequency

(a)

6 6 45

6 .65

(GH^)

(b)

Fig. 5.6: Comparison Su characteristic of simulation and measured results, (a) without a
switch (b) with a switch
B. Radiation Patterns
The simulated results of the radiation patterns of the slotted elliptical antenna without
a switch are presented in Fig. 5.7. The results include polarization in the E(yz)-plane and the
H(xz)-plane. The lobes cover 360 directions at the first resonance frequency of 3.97 GHz. A
donut shape with an approximately omnidirectional in the H-plane pattern is also shown in
Fig.5.7. The deformations appear due to the induced currents, causing in inclining the beam
away from the broadside direction in the E-plane. The radiation pattern is inclined at 45
11

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elevation angle. In addition, the radiation pattern of the antenna is affected by the ground
plane whereby the omnidirectional pattern is degraded significantly at frequencies and the
radiation pattern of the antenna becomes more directional as the frequency increases beyond
5.0 GHz. This is due to the fact that as the frequency increases, more and more of higher
order current modes are excited. The value of radiation efficiency is 93.2% at 3.97 GHz and
91.2% at 5.5 GHz.

im Palm plot [immm

ib) Polar plot (fMtaffft)

*** ^ , o t

(a)

Fig. 5.7: Simulated farfield radiation pattern in 3D at (a) 3.97 GHz (b) 5.5 GHz

4.1.3 Effect on Patch Shape

A. Return Loss, Sn
Figure 5.8 shows Sn parameters for the original air gap substrate, the original foam
substrate, and the optimized wideband antenna. The frequency band for the optimized
wideband antenna ranges from 8.35 GHz up to 14.07 GHz, which improves the bandwidth
from 4.99 GHz to 5.72 GHz. The antenna operates at 1 st resonant frequency (8.73 GHz), 2nd
resonant (11.43 GHz) and 3rd resonant (13.1 GHz). The gain measured for default design at
11.355 GHz is 8.698 dB. There is 9.14% of gain improvement when comparing the gain of
foam substrate at 8.73 GHz, which is 9.078 dB. In air gap substrate, at 9.15 GHz, Sn is
measured to be 0.0847 (linear) while in foam substrate, Sn is 0.0058 at 8.73 GHz, which
indicates smaller amount of signal is reflected back at port 1.

12
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Vofep StoxEisg W j * Rate (VSWR)

j*

\V
\

^S5^%^^<</^/

/Cr

optimized

1~

y!

s\

'

10

11

14 14.5

12

Frequency/GHz

Fig 5.9 VSWR

Fig 5.8: Return Loss

6. Vo/fage Standing Wave Ratio, VSWR

Figure 5.9 shows the VSWR comparison of default specification antenna and the optimized
antenna. The line impedance measured in this paper is 49.5139 0. For default specification,
the lowest VSWR value is 1.185 while the foam substrate acquires the lowest VSWR of
1.0117 at the optimum frequency (8.73 GHz). This VSWR value is close to match perfectly for
the antenna. The other VSWR value is less than 2 in the frequency band range.
C. Radiation Patterns
Figure 5.10 and Figure 5.11 show the radiation pattern for the antenna at 8.73 GHz
and 11.43 GHz. The parameter values for each figure are listed in Table 3.

Fig 5.10: Radiation pattern at 8.73 GHz

Fig 5.11: Radiation pattern at 11.43 GHz

4.1.4 Effect on Orientations of Patch Slot

A. Return Loss, Sn
Fig. 5.12 clearly shows that there are three resonant frequencies obtained from two
different orientations of the rectangular patch slot. The resonant frequency of Hs which
consists of horizontal slot yields at approximately 2.4GHz. On the other hand, the vertical slot,
Vs which located at two different position yields its resonant frequency at 4.6GHz and 5.7GHz
respectively.

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Return loss or Sn represents how much incident signal at port 1 being reflected at port 1. If
Sn =0dB, it indicates that all signals are reflected and nothing is radiated. As depicted in fig.
5.12, the value of Sn is measured to be -17.378 dB for Hs at its resonant frequency of
2.4GHz. Meanwhile, the magnitude of Sn for Vs1 and Vs2 are -30.353dB and -43.638dB at
their respective resonant frequencies.
0 *< s

;-- L..

<ZPg

'f^x?

-5
40

I-15

|
HS

-30

Vs2
Vsl

I -35
-40
-45

4.66Hz

-50
3.5

4.5

Frequency, f{GHzJ

Fig. 5.12. Return Loss Versus Frequency.

Fig 5.13 VSWR

B. Voltage Standing Wave Ratio, VSWR

Fig. 5.13 illustrates the comparison of VSWR between horizontal slot, H-slot and vertical
slot, V-slot. VSWR is a measure of how well an antenna is matched to the line impedance. A
VSWR of 1:1 indicates that the antenna is perfectly matched. In this study, the lowest VSWR
value for H-slot is 1.313 at its resonant frequency of 2.4GHz. Meanwhile, the value of VSWR
for V-slots, Vs1 and Vs2 are 1.013 and 1.063 respectively. The proposed antenna for both Vslots can be considered very close to perfectly matched since the both VSWR values are
almost 1.
C. Radiation Patterns

Fig.5.14(a) illustrates the radiation pattern for H-slot at operating frequency of 2.4GHz in
polar plot. There are one main lobe and one back lobe that can be found on the radiation
pattern. The radiation patterns for V-slots at operating frequencies of 4.6 GHz and 5.7GHz in
polar plots are shown in Fig. 5.14(b) and Fig. 5.4(c) respectively. The different shapes of both
radiation patterns may due to the different axis spacing and the slot size although both slots
are positioned at the same vertical orientation.

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(a)

(b)

(c)

Fig. 5.14. Radiation patterns for (a) H-slot at 2.4GHz in polar plot, (b) V-slot at 4.6GHz in
polar plot; (c) V-slot at 5.7GHz in polar plot

The values of radiation parameters for each frequency are tabulated in Table I. From the
table, it shows that the vertical slot, Vs2 which operates at 5.7GHz has the highest gain and
the widest bandwidth, as compared to the results of the other two slots. The gain obtained
from Vs1 is the lowest while the bandwidth of Hs is the narrowest among the three slots.
TABLE I.

RADIATION PARAMETERS

Type of Slot

Hs

Vs1

Vs2

Frequency (GHz)

2.4

4.6

5.7

Gain (dB)

3.916

1.473

5.023

Beamwidth at -3dB ()

87.7

66.9

62.7

Bandwidth (MHz)

68.39

116.4

276.85

4.2 Reconfigurable Single Patch Antenna

The switch configurations for the horizontal slot tabulated in Table II below.
TABLE II. SWITCH CONFIGURATIONS FOR HORIZONTAL SLOT
Case No

SW1
SW2
SW3

1
ON
OFF
OFF

2
OFF
ON
OFF

3
OFF
OFF
ON

4
ON
OFF
ON

5
OFF
ON
ON

6
ON
ON
OFF

7
ON
ON
ON

8
OFF
OFF
OFF

Fig 5.15 clearly indicates that there are two resonant frequencies for all cases except for
case 1 whereby only one switch, SW1 is ON. For the first frequency, f1 it yields at
approximately 2.356 GHz, and at 5.6 GHz for the second frequency, f2. For case 1, there is
only one resonant frequency available which is approximately 2.356 GHz when only SW1 is
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ON. This shows one of the properties of a reconfigurable antenna, which is the capability to
change operating frequency independently [8].
.-,,,
4

I*

--11

(i

tt

**rft<* C&*ftfwr*tkm (C *#o)

Fig 5.15. The effect of the switch configurations on the operating frequency
Three cases with significant result of return losses were illustrated in Fig 5.16. Case 1
when only SW1 is ON yields return loss of -212487dB at only single frequency of 2.352 GHz.
In case 6 when SW1 and SW2 are ON, the return loss yields at dual frequency of 2.356 GHz
and 5.524. However, it is skewed to 2.356 GHz due to its lower return loss. On the other hand,
in case 7 when all switches are ON, the return loss is skewed to 5.676 GHz due to its lower
value of -20.523 as compared to -15.679 at 2.356 GHz. Higher gain is also achieved at the
second frequency.

Fig 5.16. The return losses of different switch modes.

Table III summarizes results of case 1 and case 7 to indicate that the proposed antenna
has the ability to change the operating frequency using RF switches.
TABLE III. SWITCH CONFIGURATIONS FOR HORIZONTAL SLOT

Resonant Frequency
(GHz)
Casel
OnlySWlON
Case 7
ALLSWON

fl=!
f2=]
fl=j
f2=|

Return Loss
(dB)

Gain(dB)

2.352

-21.249
-

3.314

2.356
5.676

-15.679
-20.523

3.399
5.200

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6. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION

In this project, several antenna structures have been proposed and those structures
have been designed, simulated, optimized and analyzed using CST 2009 software. A
parametric study for an E-shaped wideband microstrip patch antenna using C-Foam PF-2
shows that the antenna can be operated at 8.34 GHz up to 13.86 GHz frequency band. This
result is an improvement to the original specification which saw the bandwidth is expanded
from 4.99 GHz to 5.72 GHz. Other parameters such as gain, S<\<\ and VSWR have also been
improved. A slotted elliptical antenna is proposed for broadband applications. Parametric
studies of the antenna characteristics are presented and the return loss at resonance
frequency of the prototyped antenna is compared with those of the simulated results. A switch
is added to the slotted elliptical antenna and the performance of the antenna after adding a
switch is discussed.
A reconfigurable microstrip antenna with a slotted patch using aperture coupler technique
has been successfully designed according to its design specifications, simulated and analyzed.
The effects of two vertical slots and one horizontal slot with PIN diode switches have been
presented. The integration of PIN diode switches with the horizontal slot has proven that the
proposed antenna is able to achieve frequency reconfigurability. Different modes of switch
configurations resulted in single or dual frequency. When only SW1 is ON, the proposed
antenna operates at single frequency of 2.352 GHz. On the other hand, when all switches are
ON, it operates at dual frequency of 2.356 GHz and 5.676 GHz but it is more skewed to 5.676
GHz due to its lower value of return loss.
A parametric study on the effects of the patch slot dimensions and axis spacing has been
presented. The results showed that the excitation of resonant frequencies is affected by the
orientation and size of the patch slot. The proposed antenna is able to operate at different
frequencies without changing its radiating patch dimensions. This concept can be very useful
in designing an array antenna with more than one operating frequency as it may help to reduce
the overall size of the antenna. For future work, a frequency reconfigurable antenna can be
designed by using this concept for the applications of point-to-point wireless communication
systems.
Other factors that can contribute in the antenna performance are the type,
thickness and dielectric constant of substrate. It is believed that antenna with Duroid
as substrate can produce better results than FR-4 especially in terms of higher gain
and bandwidth.

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7. RESEARCH OUTCOMES

Publications
Number of articles/
manuscripts/ books
(Please attach the paper)

Conference Proceeding
(Please attach the paper)

Indexed Journal

Non-Indexed Journal

International

National
3

S. Muhamud @ Kayat, M. T. AN and M. K. M. Salleh ,

A Reconfigurable Microstrip Antenna with a Slotted Patch at Dual
Frequency, IEEE 8th International Symposium on Wireless
Communication Systems (ISWCS), Aachen, Germany, 2011

List of published
journal/article/proceeding
(APA/IEEfromat)

S. Muhamud @ Kayat, M. T. Ali, M. H. M. Zaharuddin, M. N. Md

Tan and A. L. Yusof, Wideband Microstrip Single Patch Antenna,
Proceeding of International Symposium on Antennas and
Propagation (ISAP), Jeju, Korea, 2011

S. Muhamud @ Kayat, M.T Ali, E. Adznina and M. K. M. Salleh, A

Slotted Elliptical Antenna for Wideband Applications, Proceeding
of International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (ISAP),
Jeju, Korea, 2011

Human Capital Development

Human Capital
Citizen

Others
(please specify)

Number
On-going
Malaysian

PhD Students

Master Students
Undergraduate
Students

Total

Graduated
Non
Malaysian

Malaysian

18
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Non
Malaysian