Design and simulation of active antenna for communication in smart grids

Abstract

In this paper, the design of a dual-port dual-band annular slot active antenna suitable for communication use in smart grids & WLAN, a new active antenna is proposed for optimizing the smart grid. Two way commutations are key to making the grid smarter. The smart grids refer to system that can communicate data back and forth between a utility company and a customer. The wireless communication and antennas that utilize RF signals are often best suited to facilitate this grids communication. This antenna based on modern MIC and MMIC fabrication technology is used to develop a compact light weight, small size, high performance and low cost active antenna. The proposed antenna is designed to radiate and transmit equal amounts of power. The return loss of the proposed antenna is higher than that desired for one-port antenna application at the desired dual-band frequencies. The antenna generates two separate frequency resonant modes cover to cover 2.45/5.2Ghz. The antenna is fabricated on one side of a Neltec substrate with εr =3.2 and thickness= 0.762 mm, and the microstrip feeding line is fabricated on the opposite side of the board. The antenna is designed to operate at WLAN bands centered at 2.45 and 5.2GHz. The simulated and measured results show fairly good agreement.