Analysis and optimization of leaky-wave radiation at broadside from a class of 1-D periodic structures

Radiation at broadside from leaky waves is studied for one-dimensional periodic structures modeled by means of a transmission line periodically loaded by series or shunt loads. Radiation at broadside occurs via an axially fast spatial harmonic in a neighborhood of the open-stopband frequency; operation in such a frequency range is studied here by means of an approximate asymptotic Bloch analysis of the adopted equivalent network and a simple array-factor calculation of the radiated far field. The condition of equal values for the phase and attenuation constants of the radiating spatial harmonic is shown to give rise to maximum radiation at broadside in the lossless case and to the splitting of a single peak of the radiation pattern at broadside into two distinct peaks in both the lossless and the lossy cases. The 3 dB frequency band for broadside radiation is characterized in terms of the leaky-pole locations in the complex plane and an approximate formula for the antenna bandwidth is provided. Numerical results illustrating these properties are provided, including full-wave simulations of a specific structure through the method of moments.