MM-Wave Phased Array Quasi-Yagi Antenna for the Upcoming 5G Cellular Communications

• Published in: Applied sciences 2019-03, Vol.9 (5), p.978
• Main Authors: Ojaroudi Parchin, Naser, Alibakhshikenari, Mohammad, Jahanbakhsh Basherlou, Haleh, A. Abd-Alhameed, Raed, Rodriguez, Jonathan, Limiti, Ernesto
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 5G mobile communication; 5G systems; Antenna arrays; Antenna design; Antennas; Bandwidths; cellular communications; Circuit boards; Circuit design; Coaxial cables; Computer engineering; Computer simulation; Design; Directors; Efficiency; end-fire radiation beam; Feasibility studies; Investigations; Millimeter waves; mm-Wave applications; Mutual coupling; PCB compounds; phased array; Phased arrays; Printed circuits; Propagation; Quasi-Yagi antenna; Radiation; Satellite communications; Scanning; Smartphones; Software; Yagi antennas
• ISSN: 2076-3417; 2076-3417
• DOI: 10.3390/app9050978

The focus of this manuscript was to propose a new phased array antenna design for the fifth generation (5G) mobile platforms. Eight elements of compact Quasi-Yagi antennas were placed on the top portion of smartphone printed circuits board (PCB) to form a beam-steerable phased array design. The −10 dB impedance-bandwidth of proposed 5G smartphone antenna spans from 25 GHz to 27 GHz providing 2 GHz bandwidth with less than −16 dB mutual coupling function. A coax-to-microstripline with a truncated crown of vias around the coaxial cable was used as a feeding mechanism for each radiation element. An Arlon Ad 350 substance with properties of ε = 3.5, δ = 0.003, and h = 0.8 mm was chosen as the antenna substrate. The proposed phased array antenna provides wide-angle scanning of 0°~75° with more than 10 dB realized gain levels. For the scanning angle of 0°~60°, the antenna array provides more than 90% (−0.5 dB) radiation and total efficiencies. In addition, the specific absorption rate (SAR) function and radiation performance of the design in the presence of the user-hand/user-hand have been studied. The results validate the feasibility of the proposed design for use in the 5G handheld devices. Furthermore, using the presented Quasi-Yagi elements, the radiation properties of 2 × 2, 4 × 4, and 8 × 8 planar arrays were studied and more than 8.3, 13.5, and 19.3 dBi directivities have been achieved for the designed planar arrays. The results show that the designed arrays (linear & planar) satisfy the general requirements for use in 5G platforms.