Dual-Band Microstrip Leaky-Wave Antenna for Wi-Fi Applications

We present a novel design of a frequency-scanned leaky-wave antenna with dual-band operation in the 2.4 GHz and in the 5 GHz ISM bands of the Wi-Fi wireless LAN standard. It is designed in microstrip technology, using two half-width microstrip leaky lines sharing a common substrate, each one tuned to radiate in a separate frequency band. A microstrip notch filter and the self-filtering response of the leaky lines are the mechanisms used to isolate the lower and upper bands, leading to a compact and simple design. This architecture allows independent tuning of each band frequencies and beamwidths.