Miniature microstrip-fed ultra-wideband printed monopole antenna with a partial ground plane structure

A new microstrip-fed planar monopole antenna is presented for ultra-wideband (UWB) communication systems. The antenna structure consists of a dome-topped, bowl-shaped patch with a truncated ground plane structure. The ground plane is predominately tapered and includes a notch below the feed-line in the vicinity of the patch. The effects of dimensional parameters on the performance of the antenna have been investigated through a parametric study. Current density distribution on the antenna was also computed to gain a better insight of its behaviour. The antenna performance is validated through measurement, including its radiation patterns. The measured impedance bandwidth of the proposed antenna for vertical bar S-11 vertical bar <= -10 dB is 10.35 GHz (2.65-13.0 GHz), constituting 132% impedance bandwidth. The fabricated antenna has a compact size of 18 x 20 x 1.6 mm(3). Additional features that make the antenna a suitable candidate for UWB systems are its simple configuration, compactness and low fabrication cost.