A compact vivaldi antenna array for 5G channel sounding applications

A compact design of phased array Vivaldi antenna for channel sounding applications is proposed. 64-elements of low-profile 22 GHz Vivaldi antennas with coaxial-to-SIW feeds and well-defined end-fire radiation patterns have been used to form an 8×8 planar array design. The antenna elements are designed on 1.6 mm Arlon AD-320 substrates (ε= 3.2 and δ= 0.0038). The structure of SIW is composed of two rows of cylinders between metal plates which can improve the radiation performance of the elements. The proposed phased array antenna has a compact size with frequency response of 21–23 GHz. It has good features in terms of impedance-matching, gain and efficiency characteristics. More than 22 dB realized gain, 23 dBi directivity, and −0.5 dB (90%) total efficiency have been obtained. In addition, the performance of the planar array with different numbers of the radiators has been investigated.