This letter presents the study of integrating meshed patch antennas directly onto the solar cells of a small satellite to save valuable surface real estate. The cover glass of the solar cell is used as the substrate for the antennas. The integrated patch antennas are designed to have sufficient optical transparency to ensure the proper functionality of the solar cells. A prototype meshed patch antenna is designed and integrated on after-market solar cells. The antenna has an optical transparency of 93%, and the measurements agree well with the design.

[1] We present direct observational evidence for solar cycle influence on the infrared energy budget and radiative cooling of the thermosphere. By analyzing nearly five years of data from the Sounding of the Atmosphere using Broadband Emission Radiometry (SABER) instrument, we show that the annual mean infrared power radiated by the nitric oxide (NO) molecule at 5.3 mm has decreased by a factor of 2.9. This decrease is correlated (r = 0.96) with the decrease in the annual mean F10.7 solar index. Despite the sharp decrease in radiated power (which is equivalent to a decrease in the vertical integrated radiative cooling rate), the variability of the power as given in the standard deviation of the annual means remains approximately constant. A simple relationship is shown to exist between the infrared power radiated by NO and the F10.7 index, thus providing a fundamental relationship between solar activity and the thermospheric cooling rate for use in thermospheric models. The change in NO radiated power is also consistent with changes in absorbed ultraviolet radiation over the same time period. Computations of radiated power using an empirical model show much less variability than observed by SABER.

Abstract-This paper analyzes rectangular and circular patch antennas fabricated from meshed conductors and backed with solid ground planes. Because of the meshing, the antennas are rendered optically transparent, where the transparency is determined by the mesh geometry. It is found that although there is a compromise between the antenna's efficiency and the optical transparency of the meshed patch, it is possible to optimize the antenna by refining mesh lines to certain extent. The limiting factors for refining mesh lines include material handling and fabrication process as well as the increased line impedance when being refined, which accordingly causes loss in antenna's efficiency. A refined mesh with thin linewidth increases both antenna performance and transparency. Additionally, it is found that the reduction of certain mesh lines increases the optical transparency with minimal hindrance to the antenna's efficiency, leading to further enhancement to the see-through percentage. Although it is possible to refine mesh lines to improve the antenna's efficiency or gain, it is seen that there is a limit for such an optimization method. This limit is closer to the efficiency of a solid patch for a lower transparency, whereas it is lower for increased transparency. Cross polarization level was also examined, and there was no significant effect on such a parameter due to meshing.

Meshed microstrip antennas are optically see‐through when printed on transparent substrates and can potentially be directly integrated on solar cells to save surface real estate of small satellites.Integrating active components such as amplifiers with see‐through antennas further extends multifunctionality of solar panels. Two active integrated meshed patch antennas were studied at 2.48 GHz. The antennas serve as loads for class‐B power amplifiers and as radiators. As a reference, the first design was a regular meshed antenna integrated with an amplifier. In the second design, the antenna was modified to suppress its second harmonics to improve the power added efficiency (PAE) of the integrated amplifier. It was shown that the PAE of the second design is increased by the harmonics suppression. The maximum PAE was measured to be 47.2% for the harmonics suppressing meshed antenna, and the output power is 15.8 dBm at the peak PAE. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 54:1593–1595, 2012; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com. DOI 10.1002/mop.26906

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