Microstrip Antennas

Microstrip antenna array with corporate feed

Microstrip antennas can range from a simple pin-fed patch to complex designs incorporating multiple dielectric layers with widely varying electromagnetic properties and complex metallic shapes on different dielectric layers. Typical simulation results of interest  include:

• Coupling efficiency between metallic layers
• Near and far-fields
• Current distribution on metallic layers
• Input impedance
  

FEKO offers all of these capabilities, through its comprehensive, full-wave Method of Moments (MoM) solver. The current distribution on all metallic elements of a microstrip antenna is calculated, with other antenna characteristic parameters derived from the currents.

FEKO has a special MoM solver for finite metal objects or slots in the presence of infinite, planar media. This enables the efficient analysis of complex microstrip antennas. To specifically model the effect of a finite substrate on antenna performance, the FEKO MoM solver for finite dielectric and metal bodies is most applicable. Various excitation options are available:

• Voltage sources along wire segments between triangular patches
• Edge ports at the end of a microstrip feed line
• Coaxial feed approximation (vertical pin to ground)
• Impressed current source
• Elementary electrical and magnetic dipoles
• Plane waves

Microstrip antenna on finite substrate	Radiation pattern polar plot