Design of a broadband dipole in close proximity to an EBG ground plane

One of the known advantages of an electromagnetic bandgap (EBG) ground plane is the fact that a straight-wire dipole can be located parallel and in very close proximity to the ground plane. For such a structure and geometry, a reasonable impedance match to 50 n) can be achieved with more bandwidth than when the dipole is located in close proximity to a PEC ground plane. However, in addition to impedance, radiation-pattern properties must be considered when evaluating the antenna's overall performance and usable bandwidth. Here, we consider the performance properties of a folded bowtie dipole element in close proximity to an EBG ground plane, with emphasis on examining the bandwidth and pattern characteristics. We demonstrate that a dipole element can be designed to exhibit a matched input impedance over approximately a 1.4:1 bandwidth with respect to a 50 n characteristic impedance, when located in close proximity to the EBG ground plane. While the shape of the radiation pattern of the antenna remains relatively unchanged over much of this operating bandwidth, we show that the usable bandwidth of the antenna-EBG combination is limited to approximately 1.5:1, due to pattern degradation at both the lower and upper frequencies. Details of the design approach and feed structure used to match the impedance of the dipole to 50 fl are discussed. Finally, we show that with this element design, the reflection phase bandwidth of the EBG ground plan-e does not limit the matched impedance bandwidth of the antenna. A -portion of ,t ,he work detailed here was presented at the 2005 Antenna Applications Symposium.