Coupling Reduction for a Wideband Circularly Polarized Conformal Array Antenna With a Single-Negative Structure

TLDR: In this article, a wideband circularly polarized (CP) conformal array is decoupled by a single-negative (SNG) metamaterial (MTM) isolator.

Abstract: Decoupling of a wideband circularly polarized (CP) conformal array is studied by a single-negative (SNG) metamaterial (MTM) isolator. The conformal array consists of two wideband CP antennas, which are assembled on an arched carrier, and a wideband SNG structure is placed between the antenna elements for coupling reduction. The SNG structure consists of four wheel-shaped units concentrically. The SNG structure is bianisotropic, and its constitutive parameters are tailored to form a wide isolation band. By using the proposed wideband SNG structure, the mutual coupling between the conformal antenna elements is reduced up to 25 dB at 4.5 GHz, and the mutual coupling is improved in the 3.9–5.05 GHz band. In addition, the loading of the SNG structure has little effect on the axial-ratio bandwidth. Besides, the gain and radiation patterns are improved. This research provides some basis in the decoupling of the conformal array.