Topology optimization-based design method of dual-band antennas

Abstract

Purpose

Recent development of wireless communication devices dictates that miniaturization, multi-functions and high integration are the important factors for antenna structures. This has resulted in the requirement of antennas with dual or multi-frequency operations. Although the dual-band antennas can be achieved through the experience-based configuration selection with the parameter adjustment, it is still a challenging problem to design an antenna with specific dual-frequency operations effectively. The purpose of the paper is to develop an effective design method to guide the design of antennas with specific dual-frequency operations.

Design/methodology/approach

The topology optimization is carried out through the material distribution approach, where the patch of the antenna is taken as the design domain. The optimization formulation is established with maximizing the minimum antenna efficiency at the target frequencies. The sensitivity of the antenna efficiency with the design variables is derived, and the optimization problem is solved by a gradient-based algorithm.

Findings

Based on the proposed design method, an example of a patch antenna design for specific dual-frequency operations is presented. The performance of the designed antenna is cross-verified by experimentation, where the reflection coefficients (S₁₁) obtained by simulation and experiment show a good agreement. The simulation and the experimentation of the designed antenna show that two operational bands are optimized to occur around the target frequencies, which confirms the effectiveness of the proposed design method.

Originality/value

This paper presents a topology optimization-based design method for patch antennas operating at dual specific frequencies.

Citation

Wang, Q., Gao, R., Liu, S. and Liu, C. (2017), "Topology optimization-based design method of dual-band antennas", Multidiscipline Modeling in Materials and Structures, Vol. 13 No. 1, pp. 11-25. https://doi.org/10.1108/MMMS-07-2016-0030