51

CHAPTER 3

DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF H-SLOT FLEXIBLE ANTENNA

WITH FOAM SUBSTRATE FOR WI-MAX APPLICATIONS

The previous chapter has presented the complete survey on the design
of flexible substrate materials, their applications and methodology carried out by
the researchers in detail. This chapter deals with the design and fabrication of a
H-slot patch antenna using flexible substrate foam for WiMAX applications.

Currently the development of radio equipment in various shapes and

immediate progress in flexible electronics (Haiying Huang 2013) need the
antennas employed on wireless devices to be manufactured in different shapes.
Moreover, improved studies of wearable equipment, RFID tags and flexible
displays have sparked more interest in the flexible antenna. Notably, there are
rising necessities of flexible antennas with low- profile, small size, and multiple
operating bands including WLAN band 2.4/5.2/5.8 GHz and WiMAX band
3.5 GHz due to the enormous increase of demand for wireless data
communication. Antennas used in wearable systems and RFID tags are
susceptible to the proximity of the material itself, so they usually degrade
performance due to the resonant current on the ground plane and their compact
size.

Because of their low profile, simple feeding, low manufacturing cost

and easy-to- integrate functionality, microstrip patch antennas
(Chouhan & Shrivastava 2019) are ideal features for wireless applications.
The antenna size has a major impact on the overall design of wireless networks,
and there is usually a trade-off between the antenna size and efficiency as the
antenna’s characteristics are closely related to its size. Compared to traditional
 52

antennas, microstrip antennas have many advantages and have also been used in
a wide variety of applications ranging from mobile communication to satellite,
aircraft and other applications.

The aim of the latest generations of wireless mobile radio networks is

to provide mobile devices with flexible data rates and a wide variety of
applications while supporting as many devices as possible. Nowadays, Flexible
antennas have been employed for wireless applications with better efficiency.

Even though previous works have employed patch antenna using rigid
substrate materials such as RT/duroid 5880, glass epoxy, Getek-ML 200M, Roger
R04003C, RogersRO4350, FR-4 etc for WLAN/WiMAX applications. However,
the usage of those substrates will result in high cost, high design complexity and
is easily breakable. This issue can be easily overcome by using flexible materials.

As from the previous works reviewed in section 2.2 in chapter 2 for the
design of antenna for WiMAX applications, it is observed that even though many
works employed flexible material for such applications, there is a deviation in
the performance of the antenna either in a major shift in the operating
frequency of the measured antenna compared to simulated one (Singh et al. 2016),
very low gain (Soukaina Sekkal et al. 2020), expensive cost of the substrate
(Saeed et al. 2016 and Dey et al. 2019) and complexity in the design
(Dey et al. 2019 and Neha Gupta et al. 2016). These drawbacks should be
addressed and rectified by correctly choosing the substrate materials.

The objective of the work is to design a compact antenna that operates

at a 3.5 GHz frequency for WiMAX application using flexible substrate material.
The antenna to be designed must be very small enough to place inside any compact
new technology wireless device.
 53

Out of many flexible substrates, Polymer materials are widely used for
the flexible applications due to their stable balance of chemical, physical and
electrical properties with relatively low loss factor (mostly less than 0.01) over a
wide frequency range (Haider et al. 2013). The most popular material nowadays
used is Polimide (dielectric constant 3.5 and loss tangent 0.003). Due to its high
flexibility with a tensile strength of 165 MPa at 73°F, a dielectric strength of
3500-7000 volts/mil, and a temperature rating of -65 to 150°C, Polimide is a better
candidate for flexible antenna substrate. However, the cost is expensive when
compared to other polymer materials.

(Source: EVA foam material: The best definite guide 2019)

Figure 3.1 EVA foam sheet

Other than that, EVA (Ethylene -Vinyl Acetate) Foam is also

performing efficiently in flexible applications as shown in Figure 3.1. There are
several exceptional performances in Foam (EVA foam material: The best definite
guide 2019), such as superior water and moisture resistance, capability to sustain
tension without cracking or breaking great cushioning and shock absorption,
powerful heat insulation and long-term durability among others.
The dielectric constant and loss tangent value of the foam material is 2.65 and
0.015 respectively.
 54

In this work, a flexible square patch antenna is presented with

H –shaped slot which is aimed for wearable as well as WiMAX applications.
As mentioned, EVA Foam is used as a substrate due to its flexible nature, in
expensive, readily available, eco-friendly etc. Its main advantage is its easy
coming back to its original position after the exhibition of any bending or twisting
its structure. The following sections deals with the design of patch antenna using
Foam substrate, simulation of the design, fabrication and finally comparison of
the results.

3.1 DESIGN OF THE FLEXIBLE ANTENNA USING FOAM

SUBSTRATE

A Microstrip patch antenna is a type of planar antennas which have

more merits and better anticipation when compared to other conventional
antennas. It can have any shape but, rectangular, square, circular and elliptical
are commonly used. The square shape is chosen because it has an equal
dimension on all sides. Due to this, the analysis is also simple when compared
to rectangle shape patch. The inclusion of the slot in the patch antenna will
improve the overall performance of the antenna. Initially, many slot types such
I- slot, E-slot, S-slot, H-slot were designed and simulated which is explained
in the next section. Out of them, H-slot has improved performance in terms of
all antenna parameters such as Return loss, VSWR, Gain and Directivity.

Figure 3.2 represents the structure or layout of the proposed antenna.

Using the standard equation of the patch antenna as given in chapter 1, antenna
parameters are calculated. The calculated parameters are then optimized and
listed below in Table 3.1. The copper is used for the patch element, ground plane
and strip line. For easy design, the square shape is chosen for the patch. Each
side of the patch is 16 mm in length and 0.1 mm in thickness.
 55

Figure 3.2 Layout of patch antenna using foam substrate

Table 3.1 Dimensions of the patch antenna using Foam

Parameters Dimension (mm)
Patch length, a 16
Width of the Stripline, SW 3
Length of the Stripline, SL 22
Length of the Substrate & Ground plane, L 50
Width of the Substrate & Ground plane, W 36
Patch and Stripline thickness 0.1
Ground Plane Thickness 0.1
Substrate Thickness 2
Slot Thickness 1
Slot Length 14

The length and width of the stripline are 22 mm and 3 mm respectively.

The thickness of the stripline is 0.1 mm. The substrate is 50 mm and 36 mm in
length and width respectively. The thickness of the substrate is
2 mm. The copper is used as the Ground Plane. The Ground plane's length and
width are as same as the substrate length and width.
 56

3.2 SIMULATION OF THE PATCH ANTENNA WITH

DIFFERENT SLOTS

As mentioned in the previous section, patch antenna with different slot

types was designed and simulated using CST Studio suite software as shown in
Figure 3.2. The designed antenna is simulated to get the output parameters such
as S11 Parameters, VSWR, Gain, Directivity and Radiation Pattern. For better
performance, a slot is included in the square-shaped patch. The slot is 14 mm in
length and 1 mm in thickness. The presence of slot in the patch will reduce the
area of the patch. The patch antenna is designed and simulated with five different
slot types: E-slot-slot, I-slot, S-slot and H-slot as shown in Figure 3.3.

Figure 3.3 Designed antennas with various slot types (a) Without slot,
(b) E-slot, (c) F-slot, (d) I-slot, (e) S-slot and (f) H-slot

Their performances were compared and analyzed in Table 3.2.

Observing the values of antenna parameters of all the slot types, the H-type slot
has higher performance in terms of all parameters. The most widely cited
parameter with respect to antennas is S11 in operation. The S11 computes the
quantity of power that the radiator reflects itself otherwise known as the
 57

reflection coefficient. It can also be referred as Return loss. For the antenna to be
effective, the return loss should be less than -10 dB. The S11 value of H-slot patch
is -30.26 dB at 3.50 GHz as shown in Figure 3.4 which is a very low value when
compared to other types: E-slot (-10.54 dB), F-slot (-25.26 dB),
I-slot (-16.30 dB) S-slot (-10.96 dB) and Patch without slot (-13.23 dB). Most of
the values are below -10 dB ranging from 3.35 GHz to nearly 4 GHz. Thus the
bandwidth obtained is more than 500 MHz.

Table 3.2 Comparison of various antenna parameters of patch antenna

with different slots
Return
Antenna with Frequency Gain Directivity
Loss VSWR
Slot type (GHz) (dBi) (dBi)
S11(dB)
Square patch
3.50 -13.23 1.23 0.67 3.56
without slot
Square patch
3.49 -10.54 1.84 -3.64 4.86
with E-slot
Square patch
3.48 -25.26 1.15 1.13 2.33
with F-slot
Square patch
3.51 -16.30 1.38 0.28 8.66
with I-slot
Square patch
3.50 -10.96 1.78 2.29 6.76
with S-slot
Square patch
3.50 -30.26 1.09 3.810 4.230
with H-slot
 58

Figure 3.4 Return loss measurement of H-slot square patch antenna

The Simulated result of VSWR measurement for H-slot antenna is

obtained as 1.09 as shown in Figure 3.5.

Figure 3.5 VSWR measurement of H-slot square patch antenna

Antenna gain shows how strongly an antenna can radiate or receive a

signal in the desired direction. The intensity of the signal will reach further in
a narrower direction when the antenna has a higher gain. An antenna's forward
gain, expressed in decibels (dBi), the dBi number represents the directional /
beam width properties of the antenna, i.e., directional as opposed to
omnidirectional. Figure 3.6 shows the simulation result of the Gain
measurement for the H-slot antenna. Out of all slots, the H-slot antenna has a
higher gain (3.810 dBi).
 59

Figure 3.6 Gain value of H-slot square patch antenna

Directivity is the calculation of the radiation pattern collection of a

radiator element in the desired direction. The higher directivity implies higher
the beam radiated by an antenna in the desired direction. Figure 3.7 shows the
simulation result of the Directivity measurement of the H-slot patch antenna. All
the antenna structures have an acceptable value of directivity (greater
than 2 dBi).

Figure 3.7 Directivity of H-slot square patch antenna

An antenna's radiation pattern plays an important role in the

functioning of the antenna element as it implies how far the energy transmission
of the antenna will radiate in space. The pattern includes a number of lobes.
It won’t depend on the distance that is measured far from the antenna. Figure
3.8 shows the simulation result of the Radiation Pattern of the H-slot antenna.
The pattern is mostly omnidirectional which is required for an antenna to
employ in WiMAX applications.
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Figure 3.8 The radiation pattern of H-slot square patch antenna

3.2.1 H-Slot Antenna under Bending Conditions

Bending is also essential for an antenna to act as a flexible antenna as

well as be equipped with flexible devices or foldable electronics. To demonstrate
the bending of the antenna, the bending function is visualized to bend on a
cylindrical surface in CST software as shown in Figure 3.9. It depicts the bending
direction towards the cylindrical surface. The antenna is bent in the XZ plane,
which bends from both sides. The antenna is tested on various types of cylinder
radii increased from 10 mm, 20 mm, 30 mm, 40 mm and 50 mm bending
represented by R in Figure 3.9.

Figure 3.9 Pictorial representation of the antenna to bend towards the

cylindrical surface in CST
 61

(a) (b)
Figure 3.10 H-slot antenna bends at (a) Radius 40 mm and (b) Radius
30 mm

The radii of the cylinder decrease as the bending of the antenna

increases. From the simulation, the bending of the antenna with 40 mm and
30 mm radius shows better results. The proposed antenna is simulated with
bending of radius 40 mm and 30 mm as shown in Figure 3.10.

Figure 3.11 Comparison of radiation patterns of H-slot antenna with flat,

30 mm bend and 40 mm bend

Figure 3.11 shows the comparative patterns of the proposed antenna

with flat and bending of 30 mm and 40 mm radius of curvature. The graph shows
a little bit of deviation in the patterns. The pattern obtained in all three conditions
is also close to omnidirectional pattern which is needed for WiMAX applications.
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Table 3.3 Comparison of various antenna parameters of patch antenna

with bending of radius 40 mm, 30 mm and flat
Main lobe Angular Side
Return Main lobe
Antenna Frequency Gain Directivity magnitude width lobe
Loss S11 VSWR direction
type (GHz) (dBi) (dBi) (dBi) (3dB) level
(dB) (degrees)
(degrees) (dB)
Proposed
antenna 3.50 -30.26 1.09 3.810 4.230 4.26 168 49.8 -0.5
(flat)
Proposed
antenna (40 3.45 -16.14 1.37 2.02 4.68 4.69 7 81.9 -4.2
mm bend)
Proposed
antenna (30 3.25 -17.70 1.36 1.87 5.56 5.51 46 68.6 -1.7
mm bend)
Work done E-plane
323 61.1 -3.4
by Soukaina 1.07
3.5 -23 - 1.66 1.07
Sekkal et al. H-plane -
325 122.1 -9.9
(2020) 1.1
Work done 3.924 -21.33 - - 6.123 -2.6 95 77.1 -2.0
by Neha 7.48 -15.97 - - 5.98 3.4 190 25.8 -2.2
Gupta et al.
10.47 -13.89 - - 5.150 4.7 155 98.0 -2.0
(2016)

Table 3.3 shows the comparison of the simulated results of the various
antenna parameters of the patch antenna with bending of radius 40 mm, 30 mm and
flat. In the above table, the results show that there is a gradual deviation in the
performance of the antenna when it undergoes bending of lesser radius (30 mm) when
compared to bending of higher radius (40 mm). A lesser radius of curvature means
the antenna is bending to higher limit. The performance also depends on the
dimension of the antenna also. Because for compact antenna, it is enough to bend the
antenna to a certain limit. No need to bend the antenna fully due to the small size of
the antenna. When compared to work done by Soukaina Sekkal et al. (2020) who has
developed a patch antenna with polyester threads as a substrate having dimension 55
× 66 mm2 which is very large compared to the dimension of the proposed antenna
50 × 36 mm2. Also the gain obtained is very low (1.66 dBi) compared to the proposed
 63

antenna (3.810 dBi). The Bandwidth (>500 MHz) obtained in Foam antenna is also
better when compared to that (50-100 MB) of work done by Soukaina Sekkal et al.
(2020). The percentage of Bandwidth is improved by 14% when compared to that
(2%) of the existing work. The efficiency of proposed antenna is 90% under flat
conditions. However, the efficiency is reduced when the antenna is bent. This can be
avoided by reducing extraneous radiations.

Neha Gupta et al. 2016 developed a stacked patch antenna using Jeans
substrate with 100 × 92.6 mm2 which is a very large size compared
to the proposed antenna. Even though the directivity obtained in the work
(Neha Gupta et al. 2016) is more or less similar to that of the proposed work, there
is no mention of gain for all three bands. Thus the radiation pattern parameters
obtained for the proposed antenna are also better than the other works mentioned.

3.3 ANTENNA FABRICATION AND MEASUREMENT

The proposed antenna is fabricated with the same dimension as in

the simulated model with foam as substrate and copper for ground and patch layer
as shown in Figure 3.12. The ground plane and patch of the antenna were made by
a copper sheet of 0.1 mm thickness. The substrate is made use of foam material of
[Link] the layers are stacked and are connected with the SMA (Sub Miniature
Version A) connector via the microstrip line feeding technique. Microstrip line feed
is one of the simplest techniques to construct since it is merely a conducting strip
connected to the patch and can thus be viewed as an extension of the patch. It is easy
to model and match simply by adjusting the inset position.
 64

Figure 3.12 Fabricated antenna using EVA foam substrate

3.3.1 Testing using Vector Network Analyzer

In order to assess the values of performance parameters acquired with

the antenna designed using simulation software, the fabricated antenna is
connected with the Vector Network Analyzer (VNA) for return loss and VSWR
measurement. A VNA is the measurement system that enables the analysis of the
performance of microwave and RF devices with respect to scattering parameters.
Using VNA, the S parameters and the VSWR of the fabricated antenna are
measured. Since the antenna consists of a single port, the S parameter is denoted
as S11 and considered as return loss at port 1. The fabricated antenna is tested
using Vector Network Analyser Agilent Technologies N99223A as shown in
Figure 3.13.
 65

Figure 3.13 Testing of a fabricated antenna using vector network analyzer

Figures 3.14 and 3.15 shows the screenshot of the S-parameter (Return
loss) and VSWR measurement of the fabricated antenna. In this, the return loss
obtained is -24.95 dB at 3.52 GHz which is matching with the simulated value
(-30.26 at 3.50 GHz). The measured VSWR value is 1.241 which is close to the
simulated value (1.09 at 3.50 GHz). Table 3.4 depicts the comparison of the
simulated and measured value of the proposed antenna.

Figure 3.14 Screen shot of S-parameter measurement of the fabricated

antenna
 66

Figure 3.15 Screen shot of VSWR measurement of the fabricated antenna

3.3.2 Gain Measurement

A standardized reference antenna is used as a receiver first for specific

transmitting power, and then the test antenna is used as a receiver to evaluate the
gain of the fabricated antenna. The gain calculation took into account the amount
of received power by both the calibrated and test antennas. A microwave bench
setup is used to accomplish this measurement as shown in Figure 3.16.

Figure 3.16 Gain measurement setup for the proposed antenna

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Equation (3.1) is used to calculate the gain of the proposed antenna

from that of the reference antenna. From the experimental setup employing a
microwave bench, it is noticed that the power received by the calibrated/reference
antenna is 1.38 mW, whereas the power received by the test antenna is 1.3 mW.
The gain of the tested antenna is given by the relative method equation
(Selvan et al. 2018 & Mistry et al. 2019),
P 
Gt  Gc  10 log 10  t  (3.1)
 Pc 
where, Gt denotes gain of the tested antenna in dB,
Gc denotes gain of the calibrated antenna in dB,
Pt denotes Power received by the tested antenna in mW,
Pc denotes Power received by the calibrated antenna in mW.

In the above equation, Gc and Pc have known values and is given by

4.52 dB and 1.38 mW respectively. From the setup, Pt is taken as 1.3mW. By
substituting the above values in Equation (3.1), the gain of the test antenna, Gt is
calculated as 3.28 dB.

3.3.3 Testing using Spectrum Analyser

The set up for the spectrum analyser measurement for the designed
antenna is as shown in Figure 3.17. Spectrum analysis will be performed to
measure the magnitude of the input signal based on its frequency within the full
frequency range of the instrument (3.5 GHz). Using the spectrum analyzer, the
power of known and unknown signals will be measured for primary use (Spectran
6010). By analyzing the spectra of electrical signals, dominant frequency, power
distortion, harmonics, bandwidth, and other spectral components, which are not
readily detectable in the time domain, can be observed. The spectrum analyzer
displays frequency on X-axis (horizontal) and the amplitude on the Y-axis
(vertical).
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Figure 3.17 Setup of spectrum analyzer measurement

The setup shows the interface between the system and the spectrum
analyzer with a designed foam antenna as transmitting antenna and HyperLOG
(directional) antenna as receiving antenna. Since the transmitting antenna is
designed as omnidirectional, the receiver antenna will receive in any direction.
The power received from the designed antenna to the receiver antenna is taken as
-63 dBm which is known as signal strength. The WiMAX/Wi-Fi signal strength
is measured in multiple ways, but the most common way is in decibels per
milliwatt (dBm). Any value more than -67dBm is a reliable signal strength
(Wi-Fi Signal Strength 2021) which is the minimum for any online services that
require a reliable connection. The spectrum also confirms that the center
frequency is 3.5 GHz.

Table 3.4 shows the comparison of simulated and measured values of

the flexible antenna using EVA foam. From the table, it is known that the values
of S11, Gain and VSWR are very much matched and satisfactory.
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Table 3.4 Comparison of the simulated and measured value of the flexible
antenna using EVA foam
Parameters Resonant S11 Gain
Antenna Frequency parameters VSWR (dBi)
Condition (GHz) (dB)
Flat 3.50 -30.26 1.09 3.810
Bend
Simulated
(40mm 3.45 -16.14 1.37 2.02
radius)
Flat 3.52 -24.95 1.241 3.28
Bend
Measured
(40mm 3.44 -18.34 1.52 2.78
radius)

The proposed antenna has compact size (50 mm × 36 mm)

and low thickness (2 mm) when compared with work done by
Soukaina Sekkal et al. (2020) whose antenna size is 55 × 66 mm2 and work done
by Neha Gupta et al. (2016) whose antenna size is 100 × 92.6 mm2 and substrate
thickness 3 mm. This implies 46% reduction in the proposed antenna size. Due to
its compact size, it can also be fitted with any kind of new wireless communication
device. The foam substrate also does not absorb water content which makes it
employ in outside environment appliances also. Moreover, the directivity and the
radiation pattern characteristics are satisfactory for both flat and bending
conditions.

3.4 SUMMARY

The proposed antenna is the key approach to use EVA foam fabric as
a flexible substrate. The simulated (-30.26 dB) and measured (-24.95 dB) values
of Return loss or S11 are in good agreement. The gain values for simulated
(3.81 dBi) and measured (3.28dBi) are also in a better position. The results of the
 70

antenna under bending conditions are also satisfactory. Thus the overall results
show that foam fabric act as an acceptable substrate for flexible applications. Due
to light weight, long durability, washable, water-resistant and low cost, it is
possible to take over the rigid board substrate materials. Therefore, the satisfactory
performance and compactness of the antenna prove it to be deserved for diverse
portable wireless applications particularly for wearable medical applications and
WLAN/WiMAX applications. Further the antenna is small enough to place inside
any compact new technology wireless device. Additionally, improving the
bandwidth and still reducing the dimension will employ the antenna for 5G
applications.