Coupled Eighth-Mode Substrate Integrated Waveguide Antenna: Small and Wideband With High-Body Antenna Isolation

A novel antenna design for wideband operation is presented, consisting of a system of two coupled miniaturized eighth-mode resonant radiating cavities with a low-complexity feeding network. The design methodology relies on the virtual magnetic boundaries along the symmetry planes of a rectangular waveguide resonator, for size reduction, and the frequency bifurcation of two tightly coupled resonators, for bandwidth enhancement. After discussing its operating principle, a prototype targeting wearable applications is designed, manufactured, and validated. Multiband operation is achieved with simultaneous coverage of the 2.4-GHz ISM band and the LTE-7 upand downlink-bands. Measurements in free-space and on-body scenarios validate the antenna's performance. A bandwidth of 414 MHz (16.2%) is measured, as well as a maximal gain of 4.7 dBi. The directive patch-like radiation pattern and the ground plane topology lead to high body-antenna isolation and good on-body performance. Impedance bandwidth and radiation pattern remain stable when the antenna is worn by a person and bent around a cylinder to mimic deformation.