MSc Thesis
(2006-2009)
Design and Nonlinear analysis and Fabrication of Enhanced Active Microstrip Antenna Using Planar Photonic Crystal
AMIRKABIR UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLGY
(Tehran)

In Active Integrated Antenna (AIA) approach, the circuit and antenna sections are combined into a single unit. In this approach, the antenna element not only acts as a load but also the radiating element. Low power dissipation, low noise, and compact design are some features of these antennas.
Photonic crystals are periodic structures that prohibit travelling of electromagnetic waves in certain frequency bands, called “bandgap”.
Employing photonic crystals in active integrated antennas, provides some advantages such as low-harmonic, high-gain, and more compact antenna and amplifier designs.
In this project, two different active integrated antenna enhanced using planar photonic crystals are designed, simulated, and fabricated. The first one is operating at 3 GHz in the receiving mode. Low harmonic levels and more compact size are some of the features of this active antenna.
The second active integrated antenna is working at 10 GHz and works in the transmitting mode. The active part is an X-band power amplifier. The patch antenna is placed at the output of the amplifier module. The radiating element is enhanced using an array of 2×2 of photonic crystals. Compact size and low harmonic level and higher gain performance, compared to the conventional design and without the photonic crystals, are achieved.