Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium Proceedings, Taipei, March 2528, 2013 479

A Grounded CPW Transparent UWB Antenna for UHF and

Microwave Frequency Application
T. Peter
1
, S. W. Cheung
2
, S. K. A. Rahim
3
, and A. R. Tharek
3
1
Department of Electronics and Computer Engineering
Brunel University, Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK
2
Department of Electronics and Electrical Engineering
University of Hong Kong, Pokfulam Road, Hong Kong, China
3
Wireless Communication Centre, Faculty of Electrical Engineering
University Technology Malaysia, Malaysia
Abstract A grounded CPW transparent ultra-wideband (UWB) antenna for Ultra High
Frequency (UHF) and microwave frequency application is proposed in this paper. The proposed
antenna covers a bandwidth starting from as low as 500 MHz to the upper limit of the FCC UWB
bandwidth of 10.6 GHz. This enables the antenna to be used for a very wide range of applications
ranging from narrow band UHF devices to high data rate UWB transceivers. The antenna is
fabricated using AgHT-8 for the CPW and radiator patch on a 1 mm thick glass substrate with
an Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) ground. The AgHT-8 has a sheet resistance of 8 m while the
ITO, a sheet resistance of 4 m. The overall size of the antenna is 64 67 mm
2
. The antenna
has a consistent at 10 dB return loss across the entire bandwidth. The antenna is suitable for
integrating onto window glass of homes and buildings as it does not aect the aesthetics of the
building. The AgHT-8 layer of the antenna additionally provides sun-shielding from harmful
sun-rays and keeps the building cool thus conserving energy required for air-conditioning in
hot climates. As such the antenna provides an integrated wireless communication and energy
conservation solution for modern day homes and buildings.
1. INTRODUCTION
Since the approval by the FCC in 2002, much research has been undertaken on UWB especially
for wireless communications. Although the FCC regulated frequency range is from 3.1 GHz to
10.6 GHz, research into extreme wide bands to cover the lower frequencies in the Megahertz range
to the microwave frequencies in the Gigahertz range was also continuously being carried out in the
background [1]. An extreme wideband enables the size of the antenna to be kept small for the lower
frequencies and big enough for the higher frequencies. However, the gain is compromised especially
at the lower frequencies. Nevertheless, such antennas could be used for short and medium range
communications. Designing such antennas with transparent materials enables them to be used on
window glass of homes and buildings [2, 3]. In this regard, a transparent grounded CPW microstrip
patch antenna is designed to cover from 500 MHz to 18 GHz. The antenna thus covers GSMs
900 MHz and 1800 MHz; UMTS 1900 MHz and 2100 MHz; and the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz WLAN
frequency bands besides FCCs 3.1 GHz to 10.6 GHz regulated range. The antenna comprises of a
microstrip patch and an extended CPW ground designed using AgHT-8 on a 1 mm glass substrate
that is layered with an ITO ground on the other side of the glass.
2. ANTENNA DESIGN
The geometry of the proposed antenna along with its parameters is as shown in Figure 1(a) and
Table 1. It is a grounded coplanar waveguide (CPW) fed microstrip patch antenna inscribed on a
thin transparent conductive oxide (TCO) polymer lm, AgHT-8. The overall size of the antenna is
6467 mm
2
. The microstrip rectangular patch is designed as an inset in the enclosed and extended
ground of the CPW. The rectangular patch of size, 2721 mm
2
is fed by a feed line of width 3.5 mm.
The feed gap between the feed line and extended CPW ground is 0.25 mm. The prototype of the
antenna is shown in Figure 1(b). The SMA connector is connected to the antenna using conductive
epoxy. The DC resistance of the conductive portion of the AgHT-8 is around 25 Ohms and has a
conductivity of 125,000 S/m. The surface resistivity of the AgHT-8 as noted from its trademark
name is 8 m. The AgHT lm has a thickness of 0.175 mm making it suitable for use on glass of
windows and buildings.
480 PIERS Proceedings, Taipei, March 2528, 2013
3. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS
The measured return loss of the antenna prototype is as given in Figure 2. The measured 10 dB
bandwidth ranged from 800 MHz to above 18 GHz. The measured gain is shown in Figure 3. The
gain is noticed to increase gradually above 10 GHz which may provide potentials for its use in other
higher frequency applications. The gain could be eectively improved if the antenna is designed
using AgHT-4 which has a higher conductivity and lesser surface resistance of 4 m.
The measured radiation patterns are given in Figure 4. The proposed transparent antenna has
a quasi omni-directional radiation pattern at 1.8 GHz and above.
(a) (b)
Figure 1: (a) Geometry of the proposed transparent UWB antenna. (b) Prototype of the proposed antenna.
Table 1: Dimensions of the antenna geometry in Figure 1.
Parameters L
1
W
1
L
2
W
2
L
3
W
3
g
Size (mm) 67 64 54 52 21 27 0.25
Figure 2: Return loss of the proposed. Figure 3: Gain of the proposed antenna.
Progress In Electromagnetics Research Symposium Proceedings, Taipei, March 2528, 2013 481
Figure 4: Measured radiation patterns of the antenna at 0.9 GHz, 1.8 GHz, 1.9 GHz, 2.1 GHz, 3.1 GHz and
10.6 GHz.
4. CONCLUSIONS
A small and transparent grounded CPW UWB antenna capable of receiving and transmitting
signals at UHF and microwave frequency applications has been proposed and presented. The
antenna can be incorporated onto window glass and glass panels of buildings to support GSM,
UMTS, WLAN and UWB applications. Being transparent it maintains the aesthetics of the building
while the AgHT-8 lm material it is made from provides shielding from harmful sun-rays and keeps
the building cool.
ACKNOWLEDGMENT
The authors wish to acknowledge CPFilms, UK for their support in providing the AgHT-8 lm
used in this research.
REFERENCES
1. Wang, N.-B., Y. Song, Y.-C. Jiao, L. Zhang, and F.-S. Zhang, Extreme wideband tapered slot
antenna with impedance bandwidth in excess of 21.6 : 1, Journal of Electromagnetic Waves
and Applications, Vol. 23, Nos. 23, 231238, 2009.
2. Peter, T., Y. Y. Sun, T. I. Yuk, H. F. AbuTarboush, R. Nilavalan, and S. W. Cheung, Minia-
ture transparent UWB antenna with tunable notch for green wireless applications, 2011 In-
ternational Workshop on Antenna Technology (iWAT), 25962, March 79, 2011.
3. Peter, T., Optically transparent UWB antenna for wireless application & energy harvesting,
Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. Electronics and Computer Eng., Brunel Univ., Uxbridge, Middlesex,
UK, 2012.