A compact subdivided microstrip square patch array with low mutual coupling

Abstract

A linear compact subdivided microstrip square patch array for C-band applications is proposed. Each subdivided antenna element consists of four corner pads alternating with four high impedance strips attached to a central pad. The subdivided microstrip patch has a 61% reduction in surface area compared to a conventional square microstrip patch. Consequently, the proposed array has an 8 dB reduction in mutual coupling as compared to a conventional square patch array for identical element spacing. The four-element array shows a resonant frequency of 5.846 GHz and a -10 dB bandwidth of 44 MHz. The gain of the proposed array is 8.36 dBi.