“Measurements for Omni-directional and Directional Antennas in a Compact Reconfigurable Channel Emulator”

Determining the behavior of antennas is relatively simple given optimal conditions. The purpose of this research is to test two different antennas in extreme environments and compare the results. Omni-directional and directional antennas are being tested in a reverberation chamber emulating a multi-rich path atmosphere; to observe operating frequencies and the efficacy during severe interference. The chamber is a bench-top, hardware-based system capable of severe multi-channel and fading conditions common in wireless communications links. This system, called the Compact Reconfigurable Channel Emulator (CRCE), is capable of producing over a million discrete channel conditions via electronic and mechanical re-configurations. There are eight interference antennas, which provide interference through delayed signals and highly reflective aluminum walls. The endfire (directional) and dipole (omni-directional) antennas both operate in the 2.45 GHz ISM band. S-Parameter measurements were recorded sweeping frequencies from 2.4-2.48 GHz. The data collected will then be interpreted in Cumulative Distribution Function chart (CDF’s) to statistically analyze the effects on the antennas due to the chamber. The conclusion of this experiment will allow us to quantitatively measure efficiency of omni-directional antennas over directional antennas in multi-path environments and assess configurations for which one antenna type is more advantageous