High Gain Broadband Vivaldi Antenna for 5G Applications

In this paper we propose a compact metamaterial loaded Vivaldi antenna for 5G wireless cellular networks. The dimensions of the antenna are 1.3λ0×3.08λ0. A 3 dB increase in gain of the antenna is achieved by placing metamaterial unit cells in the radiating aperture of the antenna. These unit cells confine the fields within the radiating aperture of the antenna. The metamaterial cells result in producing a plane wave front at the antenna free space interface, thereby resulting in gain enhancement. The 1dB gain bandwidth of antenna is 42% with gain varying between 11.5 dBi to 12.5 dBi in the entire operating band. The ground plane is corrugated to prevent the surface currents from flowing outwards and hence resulting in an additional gain enhancement. The aperture efficiency of the proposed antenna is 78%.