Dual-Layer Radio-Transparent Dielectric Core Metasurface Antenna

• Published in: IEEE Open Journal of Antennas and Propagation Vol. 2; pp. 585 - 590
• Main Authors: Chachayma-Farfan, Diego J., Ra'Di, Younes, Alu, Andrea
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 2021
• Subjects: Dielectrics; dipole antenna; Dipole antennas; Impedance; Mantle cloaking; metasurface; Metasurfaces; radio-transparent antenna; Scattering; Surface impedance
• DOI: 10.1109/OJAP.2021.3075423
• ISSN: 2637-6431

Recent advances in communication systems require densely packed integrated antennas, making the system subject to undesired interferences. Cloaking and scattering cancellation using metamaterials have been proposed as interesting routes towards the suppression of antenna blockage and interference in these dense arrays. Although a few attempts have been made in this direction, finding an optimal design that can suppress the mutual scattering and at the same time preserve radiation features remains a challenge. We explore here an approach that enhances the operational bandwidth and improves angular stability of antenna cloaks, realizing effective radio-transparent antennas for communication systems. Recently, we explored the idea of using a transparent dielectric core metasurface antenna that exploits a low scattering host dielectric rod whose scattering is further reduced by a metasurface cloak with inductive properties immersed into it. At the same time, the metallic traces forming the inductive metasurface can be tailored to efficiently radiate like a conventional dipole antenna. In this work, we significantly improve this design by incorporating two metasurfaces with capacitive nature. With the addition of this second degree of freedom, we are able to optimize our design for more broadband cloaking and at the same time improved radiation characteristics and easier manufacturability.