Circularly Polarized Electrically Small Cross Dipole Antenna Using Inductively Coupled Feed

The design and simulation of a circularly polarized, electrically small cross dipole antenna using an inductively coupled feed. The electrical size is reduced using spiral top loading. The objectives of the antenna design is to meet standard criteria for antenna performance including, -10 dB impedance bandwidth, and 3 dB axial ratio bandwidth. The cross dipole geometry is needed to achieve circular polarization. The cross dipole length is reduced to achieve a size reduction. To counteract the resistance lost from the size reduction, spiral arms are added as top loading to the design. The top loading will add a capacitance to the design, increasing the reactance of the antenna. The number of arms can be controlled for optimal design preference. An inductively coupled feed is also used to increase the input resistance of the antenna for better matching. The design will be created in a software specialized in EM applications such as antennas called FEKO. Once the base design is created, a genetic algorithm will be created to optimize the design for the criteria stated in the goals and objectives. This is an iterative process and take many trials and some time. When an optimal design is created the antenna will be fabricated and measured using a network analyzer. Fabrication results will then be verified by the simulation results. With this data a paper will be written and submitted to an IEEE sponsored journal. Circularly polarized electrically small antennas is an undeveloped field in the antennas world. There are few papers of non-planer structures, research could develop new possibilities in the area, as well as discovery of new information on antennas. The significance of this research will be developing a base, and path to more research in this area. Circularly polarized antennas are very applicable to many applications including satellite communications. Reducing the size can be very beneficial to this application as well. Developing new and improved methods and designs could advance the field. Since this area has also not been developed as other areas have, this research could also lead to new discoveries in antenna geometry effects and designs. The outcome of this research will be a new antenna design that can then be used as a reference for developing other designs that are new to the field