Fully 3D printed horizontally polarised omnidirectional antenna

Abstract

The aerospace industry anticipates the use of additive manufacturing (AM) technologies for more significant weight reduction and space utilisation to seek better fuel efficiency and aircraft performances, whereas the electronics industry aims to reduce footprints of electronic devices with increased functionalities. The Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Micro-wave Studio simulation software was used for optimising critical parameters of the printed Alford-loop-structure antenna's designs to achieve an operating frequency in the range 2.4 – 2.5 GHz with good impedance matching. A simulation study was also conducted using frequency domain CST Microwave Solver to find the resonance frequency of Alford-loop-structure antenna and better understand its electrical field distributions. This paper demonstrates a fully 3D printed antenna which is able to achieve a voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) of approximately 3. The radiation pattern of the antenna in the E-plane is omnidirectional, whereas the radiation pattern in the H-plane is close to omnidirectional.