*ove Propagation

10. MoDERN ANTENNAs

of a log period

lg:LllEcoNFrGuRABle aHreniie
t A reconJigurable antenna is en antenna capabre
of modifying

,tyrr*rroffi

/i"equency and radiation properties in a controlled

and reversible manner..

'

Reconfigt*able antenncr.s, with the ability

to radiate more than one pqttern al

dffirent frequencies and porarizations, are

te Ie c

'

in

necessary

ommuni c ation sy s t e m.s.

These anlinnas can address complex

system requirements by modifying their
eeometry and electrical behavior. thereby
adapting to changes in environmental

conditions

or

system requirements (i.e., enhanced band-width.

changes in

operating frequency, polarization, and radiation

pattem).

modern

RF switches

diogram.

Neutralizing line

t_

I
I

Fig. I

0J. ReconJiguroble antenno

r0,

Antenna and Vl/ave Propagation

In order to provide a dynamical response, reconfigurable antennas integrate

rdl*

frn

an

inner mechanism (such as RF switches. varactors, mechanical actuators or

tunable
materials) that enable the intentional redistribution of the RF currents over
the
antenna surface and produce reversible modifications over its properties.

Reconfigurable antennas differ from smart antennas because the reconfiguration

mechanism lies inside the antenna rather than in an external beamforming

network. The reconfiguration capability of reconfigurable antennas is used to

maximize the antenna performance in a changing scenario or to satisfy the
changing operating requirements.
10.1.1. TYPES OF ANTENNA RECONFTGURATION

o Reconfigurable

antennas can be classified according to the antenna parameter that

is dynamically adjusted, typically the frequency of operation, radiation pattem or

polarizatibn.
(i) Freq uency Reconfig uration

o Frequency reconfigurable antennas can adjust dynamically their frequency oi

operation. They ate particularly useful in situations where several

1[L'

communications systems converge because the multiple antennas required can be

replaced by a single reconfigurable antenna.

Frequency reconfiguration

is

generally achieved by modifying physically oi

electrically the antenna dimensions using RF-switches, impedance loading o:
tunable materials.

(ii) Radiation Pattern Reconfig uration

Radiation pattern reconfigurability is based on the intentional modification of the
spherical distribution of radiation pattern. Beam steering is the most extendec
application and consists in steering the direction of maximum radiation tc
maximize the antenna gain in a link with mobile devices.
Pattern reconfigurable antennas are usually designed using movable/rotatabl;
structures or including the switchable and reactively-loaded parasitic elements.

'm"
;
X{

',.

? rt

)puFation

;l4odern Antennas

(iii) Polarization Reconfiguration

lntesrate an

,:s or titnable

::]iS OVer the

as.

r..rt-iguration
]e3ntforrning
*s

is used to

s:itisfy the

(iv) Gompound Reconfiguration

'

The Compound reconfiguration is the capability of

simultaneously tuning several
antenna parameters, for instance frequency and radiation
pattern. The most

common application of compound reconfiguration is the

combinatio, of
fiequency agility and beam-scanning to provide improved
spectral efficiencies.

::anreter that

'rn patterTr oI

Polarization reconfigurable antennas are capable of

switching betu.eep drilcreni
polarization modes. The capability of switching between
horizontal. r errical an.l
circular polarizations can be usecl to reduce polarization
mismatch losses in
portable devices. Polarization reconfigurability can
be provided by changin_u th..
balance between the different'inodes of a multimode
structure.

'

This reco4*figurability is achieved by combining in

the same structure different
single-parameter reconfiguration techniques or by reshaping
dynamically a pixel
surface.

:ie;uency of

:e:e

several

;':lred can be

pn'.

srcally or

ltrading or

10,1.2. ADVANTAGES
Tl-rere are several advantages

(i)
(ii)
(iii)

rost extended
radiation to

able/rotatable
elements.

using reconfigurable antennas are

Ability to s,pport more than one r.vireress standard.

Lower front end processihg.

Automated via

a microcontroller or a Field Programmable Gate Array

(FPGA).

(iv)
ication of the

i,

Multifunctional capabilities.

,0.1.3. APPLICATIONS
Reconfigurable antennas are required to cover diffbrent wireless
services that are
,::nned over a wide fiequency range. The main applications
are as fbllows:

(i)
'ii)
riii)

Frequency Reconfigurable Antenna for a cognitive Radio

System,
Pattern Reconfigurabre Antenna for MIMO Systems, and

Mainly used in Satellite Applications.

Antenna ancl l|/crve propagation

1g{. AcilvEANTENNA

An active antenna is an antenna

that contains active electronic

components.

;;;;;ffi;.';

din^lo antenna.
dipole
^h+^.^-^

A simple definition of active sntennas

are ony antennas with integrated
amplifier'r

signar
built right into rhe unit. Passive
antennas are antennas that
have no
amplificution stdges' An active
antenna is a passive

an onboard amplifier.
o

ontenna that simpry includes

Most active antennas have onry

one erectricar connection. that
is, RF signar and
the power for the amprifier
are suppried on the

,";;;;;;,;.,"..

mrm

flril'i

miinru

gnim

rilm

PdSsMEANTENNA
ACTIVEANTENNA

lhFp"

&rc
U[t
6t

)lt

rutr1lilill
$*qwut*r/rmryd.t'ir.

t_
Fig.l0.2. Simple active antenna
An active design allou's the
construction of antennas of limited
size and / or wide
frequency range' and are primarily
used in situations where a
simpler and more
receptive large antenna is either
impractical (inside a portable
radio) or impossible
(suburban residentiar area
trrat disarows use of rarge
outdoor low_frequency

antennas).

Most active antenxas use antenna

parts of minimar conducting
area, e.g., a smail
whip' connected to the active
component (usually a FET).
The signal attenuation
caused by the anten ura-srze-to-wa'erength
mismatch is compensated by an
active

circuit.

L,r

ffIr;'

mmrir.ii

;e Propogation

\!odern Antenn(ts

.
nponents, as

resembles a

rated signal

hal hove no
plv include,s

r signal and

signal wavelengths range from one to ten kilometers.

Power for the active components may be supplied by batteries, a filtered power
supply, or through the signal feeder itself (phantom power). Antennas containing

active impedance translating and optionally amplifuing stages are usually used
only for receiving, since operation of such stages is unidirectional.

Without amplifiers, the loss of the coaxial cable will have a severe impact on
performance. With an active uirt.nnu, it is possible to use long cables and still
maintain pgrformance.

TA

The active circuit consists of rmpedancc translating stage and an optional

amplification stage. This arrangement is especially useful for constructins
compact low frequency antennas due to budgetary, spatial, or practical
requirements (e.g., installation in vehicles), must be downsized. Low frequencl,

0.2.1. INTEGRATED ACTIVE ANTENNAS

Integrated active antennas are

elements.

a single column antenna

consists

If all the elements are fed in phase. a narrow horizontal

of

multiple

beam is formed.

By adjusting the phase of the signal to each element causes the beam to tilt..This
is known as "electrical

mobile radio

downtilt" and it is in common usage throughout the digital

industry.

JB

or wide

r and more

impossible

;-frequency

u
H

.g.. a small
attenuation
1' an active

Fig. I 0.3. Integrilecl sctive ontenno

. If the antenna column has a single transceiver, all carriers will be

approxirnate;ty ifre same amount in both transmit and receive directions.

rilted by

Antenna and Ll/ave propagat

To achieve this, it is'required to have a

.separate transceiver fbr (ideally)
antenna element a controller would be necessary to
control /synchronise
transceivers.

The requirements for success are that each transceiver

is acceptable in terms
size, weight, cost, and performance. Each transceiver
has the transmitter and
receiver electronic devices.
10.2.2. ADVANTAGES
The advantages of active antennas are as follows:

(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)

Increased coverage and capacity.

Independent optimisation per carrier and per technology.

Reduced item count at ground level and on the mast

Pcoducing duplexing filters that deliver high performance.

ll-0f :|p1F}EgISl_c.BFggNAroRANrENNA(DiA,

o The DRA is an antenna that makes use of a radiating

mode of a dielec
resonator (DR) and resonance frequency determined
by the its dimensions
dielectric constant s

Fig. 1 0.4. Dielectric resonator antenna

Propagation

Modern Antennas

:al1,v) each

o A Dielectric Resonator Antenna (DRA) is a radio

anteniia mostl\,

used at the
microwave frequencies and higher, that consists
of a block of ceramic material of
various shapes, the dielectric resonator, mounted
on a metal surface and a sround

ronise the

plane.

n terms of
ter and the

'

Radio waves are introduced into the inside of

the resonator material from the
transmitter circuit and bounce back and forth
between the resonator rvalls.
forming standing waves. The walls of the resonator
are partially transparent to
radio waves, allowing the radio power to radiate
into space.

'

An advantage of dielectric resonhtor antennas is they

lack metal parts, which
become lossy at high frequencies, dissipating
energy. so these antennas can have

lower losses and be more efficient than metal

antennas at high microwave and
millimeter wave frequencies.

dielectric

'

The dielectrii waveguide antennas aro used

in some compact portable wireless
devices, and military millimeter_wave radar
equipment.

'

The dimension

of a DRA is of the order of

wavelength and

nsions and

+
It,

where ].. is the free-space

, is the dielectric constant of the resonator

choosing a high value of

e,

(= r 0

- r 00), the size of the DRA

material. Thus, by
can be'iignificantly

reduced.

10.3.1. FEATURES

Dielectric resonator antennas offer the following

attractive features:
(i) There is no inherent conductor loss in dielectric resonators.
This leads to
high radiation efficiencS' of the antenna. This
feature is especially attractive
for millimeter (mm)-wave antennas, where the loss in
metal fabricated
antennas can be high.

(ii)

DRAs offer sirnple coupling schemes to nearly

all transmission lines used at
microwave and mm-wave frequencies. This makes
them suitable fbr
integration into different planar techno I o gi es.

Antenna and Wave Propagation

(iiD

The operating bandwidth of a DRA can be varied over a wide range by

suitably choosing resonator parameters.

(iv)

Use

of multiple modes

't:

radiating identically has also been succegsfully

addressed.

(v)

Each mode of a DRA has a unique intemal and associated exterpal field
distribution. Therefore, different radiation characteristics can be obtained by
exciting different modes of a DRA.

10.4. .TIIUO:MARKS QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

1.

What is reconJigurable antenna?

ilf,r:c

:"-

,&

lt.

reconfigurable antenna is an antenna capable of modifying dynamically its

frequency and radiation properties in a controlled and reversible manner.

Reconfigurabli'antennas, with the ability to radiate more than one pattern

different frequencies and polarizations, are necessary in

at

modem

telecommunication systems.
2.

n,

List the types of reconfiguration.

Reconfigurable antennas can be classified according to the antenna parameter

that is dynamically adjusted, typically the frequency of operation, radiation

l:Tl

pattern or polarization.

(i)
(ii)
(iii)
(iv)
3.

Frequency Reconfiguration

RadiationPatternReconfiguration
a -'.

Polarization Reconfiguration
CompoundReconfiguration

Deft ne freq uency reconfigurab I e ante nnas.

Frequency reconfigurable antennas can adjust dynamically their frequency of

operation. They

are particularly useful in situations where

several

communications systems converge because the multiple antennas required can

be replaced by a single reconfigurable antenna.