Wideband circularly polarized antenna with metallic walls for L-band applications

Abstract

Purpose To achieve right-hand circular polarization (RHCP), a 3-dB Wilkinson power divider with a λ/4 phase shifter is used. The crossed-dipoles are placed at almost λ/4 elevation on the ground plane and connected to two coaxial cables. Experiments show that the impedance bandwidth of 49.40% (913.7–1,513.1 MHz) and axial ratio bandwidth (ARBW) of 22.88% (1,145.8–1,441.8 MHz) are achieved. Design/methodology/approach In this study, a wideband crossed-dipole antenna with circularly polarized (CP) radiation for L-band satellite and radar applications is presented. The proposed CP antenna comprises two orthogonally placed printed dipoles, a quadrature coupler and a box-shaped ground plane. Findings Furthermore, by fixing the box-shaped ground plane under the radiators, 5.13 dBic RHCP peak gain at 1,300 MHz and maximum half-power beamwidth (HPBW) of 84.5° at 1,170 MHz are realized for the antenna. Originality/value Eight metallic walls are connected to four corners of the substrate to stabilize the radiation properties in this study. Results show that the ARBW and front-to-back ratio are improved and the maximum HPBW around 127° across the operating frequency band is achieved. The proposed CP antenna is a good candidate for Global Positioning System (GPS) L2 (1.227 GHz), GPS L5 (1.176 GHz) and air route surveillance radar system at 1,215–1,390 MHz frequency band.