Paolo Baccarelli

Full-Wave Modal Dispersion Analysis and Broadside Optimization for a Class of Microstrip CRLH Leaky-Wave Antennas

In this paper, a planar microstrip composite right/left-handed leaky-wave antenna is analyzed and designed as an infinite 1-D periodic microstrip leaky-wave antenna. A parametric study, based on a full-wave numerical modal approach that analyzes a unit cell using a periodic layered-medium Greens function, is shown to be an efficient approach to accurately design the structure, completely eliminating open-stopband effects and achieving an almost constant radiation efficiency when the beam is scanned through broadside. Results obtained by the proposed approach are compared with those obtained by means of both an artificial transmission-line analysis and a Bloch-wave analysis, which use the full-wave simulation of a finite-length structure. The balanced condition is interpreted in terms of the behavior of the phase and attenuation constants relevant to the radiating harmonic. Furthermore, it is shown how radiation at broadside is guaranteed by the presence of two radiating elements (one series and one shunt) within the equivalent circuit of the unit cell. The effectiveness of the analysis is demonstrated through the design of a finite-length antenna excited by a source at one end.

Comparative Analysis of Acceleration Techniques for 2-D and 3-D Green's Functions in Periodic Structures Along One and Two Directions

The problem of accelerating the calculation of the periodic Greens function is addressed here for both 3-D and 2-D free-space configurations. In the 3-D case, periodicity is considered both along one axis and along two, generally skew, axes. A comprehensive review of the existing methods is first presented and some extensions are developed. The possibility of treating the case of complex phase shifts between unit cells, necessary for the study of complex modes in periodic structures, is also investigated. Comparisons among the various acceleration methods are performed, thus providing fundamental information on their actual efficiency in typical problems.

Fundamental modal properties of surface waves on metamaterial grounded slabs

This paper deals with the analysis of surface waves supported by a metamaterial layer on a ground plane, and investigates the potentiality of these grounded slabs as substrates for planar antennas. Both double- and single-negative media, either epsilon- or mu-negative, are considered. As is known, such structures may support two kinds of surface waves, i.e., ordinary (transversely attenuating only in air) and evanescent (transversely attenuating also inside the slab) surface waves. A graphical analysis is performed for proper real solutions of the dispersion equation for TE and TM modes, and conditions are presented that ensure the suppression of a guided-wave regime for both polarizations and kinds of wave. In order to demonstrate the feasibility of substrates with such desirable properties, numerical simulations based on experimentally tested dispersion models for the permittivity and permeability of the considered metamaterial media are reported. Moreover, the effects of slab truncation on the field radiated by a dipole source are illustrated by comparing the radiation patterns at different frequencies both in the presence and in the absence of surface waves. The reported results make the considered structures promising candidates as substrates for planar antennas and arrays with reduced edge-diffraction effects and mutual coupling between elements.

A Novel Technique for Open-Stopband Suppression in 1-D Periodic Printed Leaky-Wave Antennas

A novel technique for the elimination of the open stopband in one-dimensional periodic printed leaky-wave antennas is presented. A quarter-wave transformer, or alternatively a matching stub, is introduced into the unit cell of the antenna, which forces the Bloch-wave impedance of the structure to remain real and non-zero at broadside. The effectiveness of the proposed technique is first demonstrated on a printed periodic microstrip leaky-wave antenna consisting of a single radiating stub per unit cell, which exhibits a significant stopband at broadside. The technique is then also applied to a structure consisting of two radiating stubs per unit cell, which is capable of mitigating, but not eliminating, the open stopband. In both cases the open stopband at broadside is completely suppressed.

A full-wave numerical approach for modal analysis of 1-D periodic microstrip structures

In this paper, a full-wave numerical approach for the analysis and design of one-dimensional (1-D) printed periodic structures is presented. Electromagnetic-bandgap structures and leaky-wave antennas are important special cases of structures that can be analyzed. The proposed technique is based on a mixed-potential integral equation in a unit-cell environment solved by the method of moments in the spatial domain through a triangular Delaunay mesh. The 1-D periodic vector and scalar Greens functions are derived in the spectral domain and an efficient sum of spectral integrals is carried out to obtain the spatial-domain quantities. An appropriate choice of the spectral integration path is used in order to consider leakage effects. The method developed here can thus analyze both bound and leaky modes on printed structures that have an arbitrary metallization within the unit cell.

Effects of leaky-wave propagation in metamaterial grounded slabs excited by a dipole source

In this paper, dispersive propagation and radiation properties of leaky waves on metamaterial grounded slabs are investigated. The proper or improper nature of leaky modes supported by such structures is shown to be related to the metamaterial being /spl epsi/-negative, /spl mu/-negative, or double-negative, and to field polarization, giving rise to backward or forward radiation depending on the frequency range of operation. These spectral features and the associated frequency scan of the radiated beam are illustrated by considering the field excited by a dipole source in the presence of an infinite metamaterial grounded slab. The possibility to achieve nearly equal values for the phase constants of a TE and a TM leaky mode on a large frequency range is shown; this allows us to obtain a conical radiation pattern and, also, for suitable values of the attenuation constants, the radiation of a pencil beam at broadside. Conditions for achieving maximum power density at broadside are derived, when one constitutive parameter is much smaller than the other. In order to illustrate these novel features, numerical results based on experimentally tested dispersion models for permittivity and permeability of the metamaterial media are provided, concerning leaky-wave modal properties and near and far fields excited by a dipole source.

Modal properties of surface and leaky waves propagating at arbitrary angles along a metal strip grating on a grounded slab

A full-wave analysis is presented of the dispersion properties of modes supported by a grounded dielectric slab periodically loaded with metal strips, which represents a canonical configuration employed in planar microwave antennas and arrays and in the realization of artificially hard and soft surfaces. Propagation of surface and leaky modes at arbitrary angles is considered here, without any restrictive assumption on the values of the involved physical and geometrical parameters. Spectral properties of modes are studied, by deriving generalized conditions for establishing the proper or improper nature of the spatial harmonics in the Floquet representation of the fields. The proposed approach, based on a full-wave moment-method discretization of the relevant electric-field integral equation in the spectral domain, is validated through comparisons with the available data in the literature. Novel results are presented which illustrate the continuous evolution of modes as a function of the propagation angle along the grating, both in surface and leaky propagation regimes.

Regularization of Mixed-Potential Layered-Media Green's Functions for Efficient Interpolation Procedures in Planar Periodic Structures

The problem of improving the computational efficiency in the numerical analysis of planar periodic structures is investigated here using the mixed-potential integral-equation (MPIE) approach. A new regularization of the periodic Greens functions (PGFs) that are involved in the analysis of multilayered structures is introduced, based on the effective-medium concept. This regularization involves extracting the singularities of the PGFs up to second-order terms. The resulting regularized PGF is very smooth and amenable to interpolation. Thus, optimized interpolation procedures for the PGFs can be applied, resulting in a considerable reduction of computation time without any significant effect on the accuracy. Another benefit of the regularization is that it significantly enhances the convergence of the series for both the vector- and scalar-potential PGFs. The theoretical formulation is fully validated with various numerical results for both two-dimensional (2-D) and one-dimensional (1-D) layered-media periodic structures.

A New Brillouin Dispersion Diagram for 1-D Periodic Printed Structures

Dispersion and radiation properties for bound and leaky modes supported by 1-D printed periodic structures are investigated. A new type of Brillouin diagram is presented that accounts for different types of physical leakage, namely, leakage into one or more surface waves or also simultaneously into space. This new Brillouin diagram not only provides a physical insight into the dispersive behavior of such periodic structures, but it also provides a simple and convenient way to correctly choose the integration paths that arise from a spectral-domain moment-method analysis. Numerical results illustrate the usefulness of this new Brillouin diagram in explaining the leakage and stopband behavior for these types of periodic structures.

Surface-wave suppression in a double-negative metamaterial grounded slab

Surface-wave propagation in a metamaterial grounded slab is investigated. In particular, a double-negative (DNG) medium is considered. On the basis of the dispersion equations for TE and TM surface waves supported by such a grounded slab, conditions are presented which ensure the suppression of a guided-wave regime for both polarizations. In contrast with ordinary grounded slabs, two kinds of surface waves (one evanescent only in air, the other evanescent both in air and inside the slab) have to be taken into account. The possible absence of any surface wave makes the considered structure a promising candidate as a substrate for microstrip antennas with reduced edge-diffraction effects and enhanced radiation efficiency.