Metamaterial Antennas for Wideband Operations

• US 20100045554A1
• Filed: 08/05/2009
• Published: 02/25/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 08/22/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Tyco Electronics Services GmbH (TE Connectivity Ltd. (United Kingdom))
• Original Assignee: Rayspan Corporation
• Inventors: Xu, Nan, Huang, Wei
• Granted Patent: US 8,547,286 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/753
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 15/0086 said selective devices having materials with a synthesized negative refractive index, e.g. metamaterials or left-handed materials

Abstract

Metamaterial antennas provide spatially varying electromagnetic coupling that enables impedance matching conditions for different operating frequencies of the MTM antennas so that such antennas can operate at different frequencies for wideband applications, including ultra wideband applications.

Claims

1. An antenna device based on a composite right and left handed (CRLH) metamaterial antenna structure, comprising:

a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface;

a cell patch formed on the first surface;

a launch pad formed on the first surface and separated from the cell patch by a gap, the launch pad being electromagnetically coupled to the cell patch through the gap to direct a signal to or from the cell patch;

a feed line formed on the first surface and coupled to the launch pad to conduct the signal to or from the cell patch;

a via line formed on the second surface and coupled to a ground electrode outside a footprint of the cell patch on the second surface; and

a via formed in the substrate to couple the cell patch on the first surface to the via line on the second surface;

wherein the substrate, the feed line, the cell patch, the launch pad, the via line, and the via form a CRLH metamaterial antenna structure, and

wherein the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap are structured to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling that provides impedance matching for different operating frequencies over a wideband.

2. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the launch pad is configured to at least partially surround the cell patch.

3. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the launch pad is configured to entirely surround the cell patch.

4. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the cell patch is rectangular in shape.

5. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the cell patch is triangular in shape.

6. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the cell patch is polygonal in shape.

7. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the launch pad includes an opening in which the cell patch is located and the gap between the cell patch and the launch pad forms a loop surrounding the cell patch.

8. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the launch pad includes an opening in which the cell patch is partially located and part of the cell patch is located outside the opening.

9. The antenna device as in claim 8, wherein the cell patch is elliptical in shape and the launch pad is a curved conductive strip line adjacent to part of the cell patch.

10. The antenna device as in claim 8, wherein the cell patch is circular in shape and the launch pad is a curved conductive strip line adjacent to part of the cell patch.

11. The antenna device as in claim 8, wherein the cell patch is semicircular in shape and the launch pad is a curved conductive strip line adjacent to part of the cell patch.

12. The antenna device as in claim 8, wherein the launch pad includes:

a strip portion that at least partially surrounds a portion of the cell patch; and

wing portions that are attached at two ends of the strip portion, respectively, and are extended to point away from the cell patch.

13. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the gap is configured to vary spatially.

14. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap are structured to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling that provides impedance matching for different operating frequencies over a ultra wideband (UWB) which covers 3 GHz to 10.6 GHz.

15. The antenna device as in claim 14, wherein the UWB includes a Wireless Personal Area Network (WPAN) band.

16. The antenna device as in claim 1, wherein the feed line, the launch pad, the cell patch, the via, and the via line are configured to be symmetric with respect to a plane perpendicular to the first and second surfaces and cutting along a longitudinal center line of the via line.

17. The antenna device as in claim 16, wherein the antenna device forms a substantially omnidirectional radiation pattern.

18. A method for wideband antenna operations based on a composite right and left handed (CRLH) metamaterial antenna structure, comprising:

providing an antenna including a CRLH metamaterial structure that includes a cell patch, a launch pad separated from the cell patch by a gap and electromagnetically coupled to the cell patch through the gap to direct a signal to or from the cell patch;

structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling that provides impedance matching for different operating frequencies over a wideband.

19. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes providing a spatial variation in the gap.

20. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes providing a spatial variation in the launch pad near the gap.

21. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes providing a spatial variation in the gap and a spatial variation in the launch pad near the gap.

22. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes enclosing the cell patch inside an opening of the launch pad.

23. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes enclosing part the cell patch in an opening of the cell launch pad.

24. The method as in claim 18, wherein the structuring of the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling includes providing a spatial variation in the cell patch near the gap.

25. An antenna device based on a composite right and left handed (CRLH) metamaterial antenna structure, comprising:

a substrate having a first surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface; and

first and second metallization layers formed on the first and second surfaces, respectively, to include a cell patch formed on the first surface, a launch pad formed on the first surface and separated from the cell patch by a gap, a feed line formed on the first surface and coupled to the launch pad to conduct an antenna signal to or from the cell patch, a ground electrode formed on the second surface and located outside a footprint of the cell patch projected onto the second surface, a via line formed on the second surface and coupled to the ground electrode on the second surface, and a via formed in the substrate to couple the cell patch on the first surface to the via line on the second surface;

wherein the substrate, the feed line, the cell patch, the launch pad, the via line, and the via form a CRLH metamaterial antenna structure that receives the antenna signal from the air or transmits the antennal signal into the air via the cell patch and other parts of the CRLH metamaterial antenna structure, and

wherein the cell patch, the launch pad and the gap in the first metallization layer are structured to have at least one of a spatial variation in a dimension of the gap along the gap, and a spatial variation in either or both of the cell patch and the launch pad along the gap to effectuate spatially varying electromagnetic coupling that provides impedance matching for different operating frequencies over a wideband.

26. The antenna device as in claim 25, wherein the CRLH metamaterial antenna structure is structured to provide a 360-degree radiation coverage around the CRLH metamaterial antenna structure in receiving the antenna signal from the air or transmitting the antennal signal into the air via the cell patch and other parts of the CRLH metamaterial antenna structure.

27. The antenna device as in claim 25, wherein the launch pad is configured to at least partially surround the cell patch.

28. The antenna device as in claim 25, wherein the launch pad is configured to entirely surround the cell patch.

29. The antenna device as in claim 25, comprising a conductive meander line connected to the feed line to induce a at least one additional resonance to the CRLH metamaterial antenna structure.