Low Radar Cross Section Dipole Antenna Integrated with Absorptive Frequency Selective Reflection Structure

In this paper, a low radar cross section (RCS) dipole antenna is proposed by using an absorptive frequency selective reflection (AFSR) structure as the ground plane. The proposed AFSR consists of a bandstop resonator integrated with a broadband absorber and exhibits a reflection notch within the absorption band. The reflection notch achieved in the AFSR structure coincides with the operating band of the dipole antenna. The performance parameter of the dipole antenna co-designed with the AFSR structure is nearly the same as obtained with a metallic reflector backed dipole. However, a significant out-of-band RCS reduction of more than 20 dB in the two side-bands on both sides of the operating band is achieved for the antenna co-designed with the AFSR structure compared to the antenna backed with metallic reflector. Furthermore, the AFSR backed dipole shows an increase in antenna gain by more than 1 dB compared to the reflector backed dipole.