Antennas - Principles, Design and Measurements

Seminar Overview

This course treats the fundamentals of antennas as well as design concepts and current applications. The course will contain numerous examples, experimental results, design formulas and complete solutions to many key problems. The 2006 offering features new material on wireless, mobile and EMC antennas. This course is in its twenty third year. Course content has been gradually expanded since first offered in 1983 by including additional topics and modern antenna techniques. The 2007 courses will use the new (1998) second edition of Antenna Theory & Design. A basic understanding of calculus and vectors is helpful background.

Course objectives

Provide a physical understanding of major antenna types and a knowledge of design trade-offs. Provide an understanding of basic radiation concepts and cover definitions of antenna terms. Illustrate principles with operational systems and experimental results. Demonstrate design methods and computational methods. Provide information on current antenna practice for those with interest in antennas from a systems or applications view point. Familiarize students with course materials (textbook plus handout materials) for use in future work. Familiarize students with resource materials in antenna technology.

Seminar Outline

Day 1

Antenna Fundamentals

• Radiation patterns
• Directivity and gain
• Effective Aperture
• Impedance
• Polarization
• Small antennas
• Ground planes

Day 2

Antenna Arrays

• Linear arrays
• Pattern control with arrays
• Array directivity
• Array design
• Mutual coupling
• Phased arrays
• Microstrip elements and arrays
• Operational array examples
• Future trends in arrays

Line Sources

• As a design tool
• Tapered line sources

Wire Antennas

• Dipoles
• Folded dipoles
• 5/8 wavelenth whip
• corner reflector
• Yagi-Uda arrays
• Matching techniques
• Antennas over Earth

Day 3

Broadband Antennas

• Design principles for broadbanding
• Traveling-wave antennas
• Spiral antennas
• Log-periodic antennas
• Helical antennas

Aperture Antennas

• Aperture theory
• Horn theory
• Parabolic reflector antennas
• Feeds for reflectors

Computational Methods

• Moment method basics
• Finite element/difference basics
• High frequency methods
• Applications

Day 4

Antennas in Systems

• Communication and radar systems
• Radiometry and antenna noise
• Wireless systems
  • Wireless uses and basics
  • The spectrum for wireless
  • Antennas: base station, mobile, personal
• Smart antennas (adaptive)
• EMC topics
  • Antenna near fields
  • Unintentional antennas
  • Antennas used in EMC
• Radiation safety

Antenna Measurements

• Antenna ranges
• Pattern measurement
• Gain measurement
• Polarization measurement

Seminar Materials Provided

Textbook Antenna Theory and Design, 1998 by Stutzman and Thiele plus handouts and a Certificate.

Instructor(s)

Warren L. Stutzman is a Professor of Electrical Engineering at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University. He received BSEE and AB (mathematics) degrees from the University of Illinois and MS and Ph.D. degrees from Ohio State University. In addition to co-authoring the text Antenna Theory and Design with Dr. Thiele, he is the author of Polarization in Electromagnetic Systems, Artech House, 1993, and has published many papers and technical reports in antennas and satellite communications. Dr. Stutzman was the 1992 President of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society and is a Fellow of the IEEE.

Gary A. Thiele received his Ph.D. from The Ohio State University in 1968 and served on the faculty there from 1969 to 1980. Professor Emeritus Thiele has contributed to three books, authored over 150 research reports, journal papers, and symposia presentations. He is a Fellow of the IEEE and was the 1982 President of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society. From 1989 to 1993 Dr. Thiele served on the Army Science Board. From 2001 to 2006 he was at the Air Force Research Laboratory, WPAFB.