Minkowski–Sierpinski Fractal Structure-Inspired 2 × 2 Antenna Array for Use in Next-Generation Wireless Systems

Arshad Karimbu Vallappil; Bilal A. Khawaja; Mohamad Kamal A. Rahim; Muhammad Uzair; Mohsin Jamil; Qasim Awais

doi:10.3390/fractalfract7020158

Fractal and Fractional (Feb 2023)

Minkowski–Sierpinski Fractal Structure-Inspired 2 × 2 Antenna Array for Use in Next-Generation Wireless Systems

Arshad Karimbu Vallappil,
Bilal A. Khawaja,
Mohamad Kamal A. Rahim,
Muhammad Uzair,
Mohsin Jamil,
Qasim Awais

Affiliations

Arshad Karimbu Vallappil: Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Islamic University of Madinah, P.O. Box 170, Madinah 41411, Saudi Arabia
Bilal A. Khawaja: Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Islamic University of Madinah, P.O. Box 170, Madinah 41411, Saudi Arabia
Mohamad Kamal A. Rahim: Advance RF and Microwave Research Group (ARFMRG), School of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, UTM Johor Bahru, Johor Bahru 81310, Johor, Malaysia
Muhammad Uzair: Department of Electrical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Islamic University of Madinah, P.O. Box 170, Madinah 41411, Saudi Arabia
Mohsin Jamil: Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Faculty of Engineering and Applied Science, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John’s, NL A1C 5S7, Canada
Qasim Awais: Department of Electronics Engineering, Fatima Jinnah Women University Rawalpindi, Old Presidency, Rawalpindi 46000, Pakistan

DOI: https://doi.org/10.3390/fractalfract7020158
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 7, no. 2
p. 158

Abstract

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In this paper, the design, simulation, fabrication, and characterization study of a low-cost and directional hybrid four-element (2 × 2 configuration) Minkowski–Sierpinski fractal antenna array (MSFAA) for the high-efficiency IEEE 802.11ax WLANs (Wi-Fi 6E) and the sub-6 GHz 5G wireless system is presented. Each element of the array is separated by 0.7 λ0. The complete four-element fractal antenna array system includes designing the single-element Minkowski–Sierpinski fractal antenna using two different substrates for performance comparison and an equal-split Wilkinson power divider (WPD) to achieve power division and to form a feed network. The single-element antenna, four-element fractal antenna array, and WPDs are fabricated using a flame-resistant (FR4) glass epoxy substrate with a dielectric constant (εr) of 4.3 and thickness (h) of 1.66 mm. For performance comparison, a high-end Rogers thermoset microwave material (TMM4) substrate is also used, having εr = 4.5 and h = 1.524mm, respectively. The designed four-element fractal antenna array operates at the dual-band frequencies of 4.17 and 5.97 GHz, respectively. The various performance parameters of the antenna array, such as return loss, bandwidth, gain, and 2D and 3D radiation patterns, are analyzed using CST Microwave Studio. The fabricated four-element antenna array provides the bandwidth and gain characteristic of 85 MHz/4.19 dB and 182 MHz/9.61 dB at 4.17 and 5.97 GHz frequency bands, respectively. The proposed antenna array design gives an improvement in the bandwidth, gain, and radiation pattern in the boresight at both frequencies. In the IEEE 802.11 ax WLANs (Wi-Fi 6E) deployments and the upcoming 5G wireless and satellite communication systems, it is critical to have directional antenna arrays to focus the radiated power in any specific direction. Therefore, it is believed that the proposed dual-band four-element fractal antenna array with directional radiation patterns can be an ideal candidate for the high-efficiency IEEE 802.11ax WLANs (Wi-Fi 6E) and the upcoming 5G wireless and satellite communication systems.

Published in Fractal and Fractional

ISSN: 2504-3110 (Online)
Publisher: MDPI AG
Country of publisher: Switzerland
LCC subjects: Science: Physics: Heat: Thermodynamics; Science: Mathematics: Analysis
Website: http://www.mdpi.com/journal/fractalfract

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