Wideband Design of a Compact Monopole-Like Circular Patch Antenna Using Modal Analysis

In this letter, we present a systematic approach to design a compact dual-mode monopole-like patch antenna using characteristic mode analysis (CMA). The modal analysis of a slotted circular patch structure incorporating a new shorting pin loading technique is presented. To achieve a compact monopole-like antenna with the wideband operation, it is demonstrated that the first two significant modes with monopole-like patterns are the most suitable ones for dual-mode excitation. Based on the analysis of the modal currents and electric fields, four groups of shorting pins and four slots are introduced to individually tune the two modes, which facilitates the optimization. The effects of these slots and shorting pins on the resonant frequencies of the two modes are analyzed in detail. Finally, a CPW T-junction power divider is applied to simultaneously excite these two modes and suppress the undesired modes. Apart from a more compact form factor and higher gain than existing work, it also features a competitive gain-bandwidth per volume ratio.