Ultra-wideband dual-polarized tightly coupled dipole array with double layers meta-WAIM.

An ultra-wideband dual-polarized tightly coupled dipole array (TCDA) with 10:1 bandwidth is presented. Aimed at solving the ultra-wideband impedance matching problem between the antenna and free space, a novel meta-material wide-angle impedance matching (WAIM) layer is presented. The meta-WAIM utilized a structure of planar double layers with the elliptical split ring on top and the concentric split ring on the bottom, which improves the beam scanning ability over the high-frequency band. The dual-polarized dipoles are arranged as "egg-create" and fed by the integrated double-Y balun. A resistive frequency selective surface (FSS) is loaded between the dipole and ground plane to improve the active VSWR and lower the overall profile, simultaneously. The proposed antenna array can operate over a 10:1 bandwidth (0.2–2 GHz) with an active VSWR < {2.1, 2.7, 4} and average radiation efficiency > {71.6 %, 68.9 %, 60.3 %} for the scan up to {broadside, 45°, 60°}, respectively. The overall antenna profile is 95 mm, which is only 0.063λ L evaluated at the lowest operating frequency. A prototype of a 6 × 10 array is simulated, fabricated, and measured. Good agreement is achieved between the simulated and measured results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]