Improved Gain of a Compact Slot Antenna using an FSS Reflector for GNSS L1/E1/B1/G1 bands

Abstract

In this paper, a compact stepped slot antenna, for Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) applications, is proposed. The latter one, which operates in the frequency range from 1.49 GHz to 1.66 GHz, is designed to cover five GNSS bands namely GPS-L1, Galileo-E1, GLONASS-G1, BEIDOU-B1 and EGNOS-L1. The proposed composite design is carried out in three phases. Firstly, a compact slot antenna, having a size of 58.0times52.0times1.6 mm, is designed on FR4 substrate to generate the five GNSS bands. Secondly, a compact Frequency Selective Surface (FSS) reflector, with 18.0times18.0times1.6 mm unit size, is designed to produce a stop band response matching all these bands. Finally, a single layer FSS, consisting of 9times9 units, is combined with the optimized antenna to achieve a high-gain directional antenna structure. The final proposed combination has been investigated using the High Frequency Structure Simulator (HFSS) and validated by Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Microwave Studio. Besides, a prototype antenna is fabricated and validated by measurements. The measurement results, which illustrate a good agreement with those corresponding to the simulations, have shown that the proposed composite antenna exhibits a directional radiation pattern with a high peak gain of 7.3 dBi and a maximum gain improvement of 5.65 dBi at 1.57 GHz. Furthermore, it offers good radiation efficiency in the operating bands, which makes it a good candidate for multi-systems GNSS receivers, especially to reduce the different interferences by enhancing the antenna radiation characteristics.