US-12620717-B2 - Tuning dielectric material in a patch antenna array

US12620717B2US 12620717 B2US12620717 B2US 12620717B2US-12620717-B2

Abstract

An antenna assembly includes a ground plane including conductive material, and a dielectric material above the ground plane. A patch antenna is on the dielectric material. In an example, a plurality of features extends from an upper surface or a lower surface of the dielectric material and within the dielectric material, wherein the plurality of features comprises voids filled with gas or are vacuum. Additionally, or alternatively, the dielectric material is doped with a dopant. In an example, the antenna assembly further includes a first aperture and a second aperture on the ground plane and below the patch antenna, and another dielectric material below the first and second apertures. In some such cases, a first feed line is below the first aperture, and a second feed line is below the second aperture.

Inventors

James F. Fung
Alexander D. Johnson
Jean L. Kubwimana
Jacob Tamasy

Assignees

BAE SYSTEMS INFORMATION AND ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS INTEGRATION INC.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260505
Application Date: 20230714

Claims (8)

1 . An antenna assembly comprising: a ground plane; a lower dielectric material above the ground plane; an upper dielectric material above the lower dielectric material; a lower patch antenna on the dielectric material; an upper patch antenna on the upper dielectric material; a first aperture and a second aperture on the ground plane, the first and second apertures below the patch antenna, wherein one of the first or second apertures is configured to transmit vertically polarized signals and wherein the other of the first or second apertures is configured to transmit horizontally polarized signals; another dielectric material below the first and second apertures; and a first feed line below the first aperture, and a second feed line below the second aperture, the first and second feed lines separated from the first and second apertures, respectively, by the other dielectric material; wherein at least one of (i) a plurality of features extends from an upper surface or a lower surface of the lower dielectric material and/or the upper dielectric material and within the lower dielectric material and/or the upper dielectric material, wherein the plurality of features comprises voids filled with gas or are vacuum, and/or (ii) the lower dielectric material and/or the upper dielectric material is doped with a dopant.
2 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of features extends from the upper surface or the lower surface of the lower and/or upper dielectric material and within the lower and/or upper dielectric material, and wherein a feature of the plurality of features has a width of at least 0.15 mm.
3 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material is doped with the dopant, and wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material is a dielectric foam or epoxy, and the dopant is carbon.
4 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material is doped with the dopant, wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material is a first dielectric material, and wherein the dopant is a second dielectric material that is elementally and/or compositionally different from the first dielectric material.
5 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material comprises a dielectric foam.
6 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein the lower and/or upper dielectric material is a first dielectric material, the patch antenna is a first patch antenna, the plurality of features are a first plurality of features, the dopant is a first dopant, and wherein the antenna assembly further comprises: a second dielectric material above the first patch antenna; and a second patch antenna on the second dielectric material; wherein at least one of (i) a second plurality of features extends from an upper surface or a lower surface of the second dielectric material and within the second dielectric material, wherein the second plurality of features comprise voids filled with gas or are vacuum, and/or (ii) the second dielectric material is doped with a second dopant.
7 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein a feature of the plurality of features extends from the upper surface of the lower and/or upper dielectric material to the lower surface of the respective lower and/or upper dielectric material.
8 . The antenna assembly of claim 1 , wherein a feature of the plurality of features extends from one of the upper or lower surfaces of the lower and/or upper dielectric material and within the lower and/or upper dielectric material, and doesn't extend up to the other of the upper or lower surfaces of the lower and/or upper dielectric material.

Description

FIELD OF DISCLOSURE The present disclosure relates to antennas, and more particularly, to dielectric material within patch antenna structures. BACKGROUND A patch antenna is a type of antenna with a low profile, which can be mounted on a surface. It includes a sheet or “patch” of metal, mounted over a larger sheet of metal called a ground plane. The metal sheets (the ground plane and the patch) together form a resonant transmission line with a length of approximately one-half wavelength of the radio waves. The radiation mechanism arises from fringing fields along the radiating edges. A patch antenna is often used at microwave frequencies, at which wavelengths are short enough that the patches are relatively small. There remain a number of non-trivial challenges with respect to designing and manufacturing patch antenna structures. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIGS. 1A, 1B, and 1C illustrate various views of an antenna array, wherein the antenna array comprises (i) a first dielectric material, with a first plurality of features (such as openings or holes) extending at least in part within the first dielectric material, (ii) a first plurality of patch antennas on the first dielectric material, (iii) a second dielectric material below the first dielectric material, with a second plurality of features (such as openings or holes) extending at least in part within the second dielectric material, (iv) a second plurality of patch antennas on the second dielectric material, and (v) a conductive ground plane below the second dielectric material, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1C1 illustrates an alternate example of the antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1C, wherein in FIG. 1C1, a size and/or a density of the first plurality of features (such as openings or holes) extending at least in part within the first dielectric material is substantially equal to those of the second plurality of features (such as openings or holes) extending at least in part within the second dielectric material, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1C2 illustrates another alternate example of the antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1C, wherein in FIG. 1C2, the first plurality of features extend partially, and not fully, through the first dielectric material, and the second plurality of features extend partially, and not fully, through the second dielectric material, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1C3 illustrates another alternate example of the antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1C, wherein in FIG. 1C3, a plurality of bubbles are intentionally introduced within the first dielectric material and the second dielectric material, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1C4 illustrates another alternate example of the antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1C, wherein in FIG. 1C4, the first dielectric material and the second dielectric material are doped with a dopant, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 1D illustrates a single antenna structure of the antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1C2, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2A illustrates a graph depicting a relationship between a filling ratio of one or both the first dielectric material and the second dielectric material of FIGS. 1A-1D versus an effective dielectric constant of the dielectric material (e.g., with holes therewithin), wherein the filling ratio can be tuned by tuning formation of holes within the dielectric material, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 2B illustrates a graph depicting, for four example dielectric materials (A, B, C, and D), corresponding relationships between a filling ratio of the corresponding dielectric material versus an effective dielectric constant of the corresponding dielectric material (e.g., with holes therewithin), in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. 3 illustrates a flowchart depicting a method of forming the example antenna array of FIGS. 1A-1D, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIGS. 4A, 4B, 4C, and 4D collectively illustrate an example antenna array in various stages of processing in accordance with the methodology of FIG. 3, in accordance with an embodiment of the present disclosure. Although the following detailed description will proceed with reference being made to illustrative examples, many alternatives, modifications, and variations thereof will be apparent in light of this disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION Antenna assemblies are disclosed. An example assembly includes a dual polarized, aperture fed, patch antenna array, wherein a bandwidth of the antenna array is tunable by controlling effective dielectric constants of dielectric materials supporting the patch antennas. For example, features, such as holes or voids, are machined or otherwise formed within the dielectric materials, which alters dielectric constants of the dielectric