Proceedings of the 2nd European Microwave Integrated Circuits Conference

Design Guidelines for Tunable Coplanar

and Microstrip Patch Antennas
Aparna Sankarasubramaniam1, Prasad. N. Shastry2, and Krishna Katragadda3
1
Validus Technologies, Peoria, Illinois, USA, Phone: 1-309-868-6264
aparna@pervalidus.com
2
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois, USA
snp@bradley.edu
3
Motorola Mobile Devices, Libertyville, Illinois, USA
krishna.katragadda@motorola.com

Abstract — In this paper, design guidelines for a tunable inset-
fed coplanar patch antenna and a tunable aperture-coupled
microstrip patch antenna are presented. The design procedures
are illustrated with the help of examples. The measured tuning
ranges of the coplanar and microstrip patch antennas are 240
MHz (1.796–2.036 GHz) and 875 MHz (1.395-2.27GHz)
respectively for a minimum return loss of 10dB.
Index terms — Tunable patch antennas, Coplanar patch
antenna, Microstrip patch antenna, Inset-fed coplanar patch
antenna, Aperture-coupled microstrip patch antenna.
I. INTRODUCTION
There is a growing interest in wireless systems that can be
reconfigured to function at different frequencies within a
given band. Such reconfigurable systems need tunable
antennas. Tunable antenna is one whose frequency can be
adjusted within a frequency band. In this paper, the guidelines
for designs of tunable coplanar and microstrip patch antennas
are presented for the first time.
The advantages of low profile coplanar and microstrip
patch antennas are well known [1], [2]. In a coplanar patch
antenna the ground plane is on the same side of the patch.
Therefore, via holes are not needed to mount discrete
components. Further, a coplanar patch antenna gives a larger
impedance bandwidth than a microstrip patch antenna [2].
Inset feeding gives good impedance matching without the
need for additional matching networks [3].
Aperture coupling to a microstrip patch gives improvement
in impedance bandwidth when compared to other feed
mechanisms [4]. Also there is flexibility in choosing the feed
substrate and antenna substrate independently for optimum
performance of the antenna.
In the tunable patch antennas presented in this paper, the
electrical lengths and hence the resonant frequencies of the
antennas were changed electronically by changing the reverse
bias voltages of the varactor diodes mounted on the antennas.
Tunable coplanar and microstrip patch antennas have been
investigated before [5], [6]. But, systematic guidelines have
not been provided for the designs of such antennas. In this
paper, the design guidelines are presented with the help of
examples. Equivalent circuit model for varactors have been
included in the EM simulations. Design guidelines as well as
the simulation and measured results are presented in the
following sections.
II. TUNABLE INSET-FED COPLANAR PATCH ANTENNA DESIGN
AND SIMULATION
The design and simulation of a tunable coplanar patch
antenna without conductor backing will be presented in this
section.
A square patch was designed as it can be used for
producing circular polarization. A rectangular patch can also
be designed wherein the width of the patch can be varied to
obtain good impedance matching [5].
The first step in the design process is the selection of a
substrate. Thick substrates having low dielectric constant and
low dissipation factor give higher efficiency, larger
bandwidth, and loosely bound fields for radiation [1]. But,
they also have the disadvantage of arriving at large
®
dimensions for the antenna. The substrate (RTDuroid 6002 )
selected for this design has the following properties.
İr (dielectric constant of substrate) = 2.94
h (height of substrate) = 20 mils.
Dissipation factor = 0.0012
Conductor thickness = 0.5 Oz (35um)
Equations for the design of a microstrip patch antenna are
well-known [1]. The design of a coplanar patch antenna is
very similar to that of a microstrip patch antenna. The
equations used in microstrip patch antenna design are also
applicable for coplanar patch antenna design. The only
difference being that the relative dielectric constant (İreff ) for
a coplanar waveguides is different. The İreff for a coplanar
waveguide is given by [7].
İreff = 1+((İr-1)/2)(K1/K2) (1)
Where, K1 and K2 are elliptical constants.
The dimension of the square coplanar patch antenna was
arrived at by an iterative process [1]. The dimensions of the
antenna at 2.4GHz are:
Patch length = Patch width = 3.6 cm;
Slot width = 0.2 cm
The inset feed design equation for a microstrip patch
antenna is applicable to coplanar patch antenna. The inset
helps in matching the 50 Ÿ feed line to a particular point in
the patch where the impedance is close to 50 Ÿ. The

978-2-87487-002-6 © 2007 EuMA 504 October 2007, Munich Germany

impedance along the patch decreases from a very high value
at the edges to a low value near the centre of the patch. The
inset length was determined using the following equation [3].
yo = [10e-4 [0.00169İr7 + 0.13761 İr6 – 6.1783 İr5 + 93.187 İr4
3 2
– 682.69 İr + 2561.9 İr - 4043 İr + 6697] (L/2)]
Where, yo is the length of the inset. The length of the inset in
this design was found to be 9.65 mm.
The inset design was further optimized in the EM simulator
® patch dimensions were optimized to resonate at this center
ADS Momentum to get an acceptable return loss.
The slot width was varied to achieve good matching and
the optimum value was found. As the slot width was
increased the impedance matching improved but after a
certain point the matching deteriorated. Thus an optimum
value of the slot width was found. A tunable coplanar patch
antenna is shown in Fig.1.
Fig.1. Coplanar patch antenna with varactor
Varactors, which act like variable capacitors when reverse
biased, are placed along the radiating edges of the patch
antenna to obtain tunability. When a reverse bias voltage is
applied to the varactors, the capacitance offered by them
reactively loads the patch and changes its effective electrical
length and hence its resonant frequency. As the reverse bias
voltage of the varactor increases, the capacitance offered by
the varactor decreases and hence the resonant frequency
increases. In this design, the varactors were biased externally
using a bias tee.
The varactor also influences the efficiency of the antenna.
Hence a varactor with a low insertion loss must be selected.
The varactor chosen in this design is SMV1405 from
Skyworks, Inc. It has a capacitance range from 0.63 to 2.67
pF. The varactor model provided by the manufacturer was
simulated in ADS and the capacitance was calculated. Fig. 2
shows the comparison between measured capacitance
provided by the manufacturer and that obtained from
simulations.
The varactor should be placed such that there is minimum
disturbance of currents on the patch. The radiating edges of
the patch have minimum current density. This was confirmed
by EM simulation. It must be noted that the antenna will not
tune if the varactors are placed at the non-radiating edges.
Hence the varactor was placed in the radiating edge opposite
to the feedline.
The slot width should correspond to the length of the
varactor as close as possible. If not, additional pads may be
provided to place the varactor. These pads, if provided must
(2) be included in the EM simulation. The ground plane for a
coplanar waveguide should be at least five times the width of
the centre conductor.
The centre frequency selected in the tuning range was 1.7
GHz corresponding to a varactor capacitance of 0.98 pF. The
frequency. The patch antenna was first simulated in ADS
Momentum® and then imported to the circuit simulator for
including the varactor model [8]. The procedure followed
here was to make the antenna tune in either direction of a
center frequency selected from the capacitance plot (Fig. 2).
Fig. 2 Varactor capacitance vs. reverse bias voltage
The optimized dimensions of the coplanar patch antenna are
Patch width: 3.64 cm
Patch length: 3.64 cm
Slot width: 2 mm
Inset dimension yo: 0.5 cm
II. TUNABLE INSET-FED COPLANAR PATCH ANTENNA
MEASUREMENTS
The photograph of the tunable coplanar patch antenna is
shown in Fig. 3.
Varactor
Fig. 3 Photograph of the tunable coplanar patch antenna
The measured return loss of the antenna at different tuning
voltages is shown in Fig.4. The measured tuning range (return
loss greater than 10 dB) obtained was 240 MHz (1.79 to 2.03
GHz). The measured average gain of the antenna over the
tuning range is 2.2 dB.
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 The radiation patterns shown in Fig. 5 were measured at
1.8GHz. Table I shows the comparison of simulation and
measured results of the antenna. The predicted usable tuning
range is greater than the measured tuning range. This might
be due to the characteristics of the varactor.
The tuning curves of the antenna are shown in Fig.6. There
was a slight shift of 290 MHz in the lower end of the tuning
range and about 180 MHz of shift in the higher end of the
tuning range when comparing the simulation with
measurement results with 10dB return loss. This was because
the capacitance provided by the varactor was slightly different
than what was expected.
Return loss (dB)
Fig. 4 Measured return loss of the tunable coplanar patch
antenna
The radiation patterns are almost omni-directional. This is
because the coplanar patch antenna designed, does not have a
conductor backing. The cross polarization level in the H-
plane is higher than that in the E-plane.
Fig. 5 Measured radiation patterns of the tunable coplanar
patch antenna at 1.8 GHz
TABLE I
SIMULATION AND MEASURED TUNING RANGES OF THE
COPLANAR PATCH ANTENNA
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Fig. 6 Tuning curves of the coplanar patch antenna
IV. TUNABLE APERTURE COUPLED MICROSTRIP PATCH
ANTENNA DESIGN AND SIMULATION
®
The substrates (RTDuroid 6002 ) selected for this design
have the following characteristics:
İra (dielectric constant of antenna substrate) = 2.94
İrf (dielectric constant of feed substrate) = 2.94
Ha (height of antenna substrate) = 120 mils
Hf (height of feed substrate substrate) = 20 mils
Dissipation factor = 0.0012
Conductor thickness = 35um
Equations for the design of a microstrip patch antenna are
well-known [1]. The aperture is a slot on the ground plane of
the microstrip feedline. The aperture design can be done using
the following equations [4].
Lslot = Wline+ n*Hf (3)
Wslot = (1/10)* Lslot (4)
Where, Wline = width of the microstrip feedline, and n> 6.
The dimensions of the antenna are as follows [9].
Length of the patch = 3.508 cm
Width of the patch = 3.508 cm
Length of the slot = 0.48 cm (n=7)
Width of the slot = 0.048 cm
Open circuit stub length = 2.01 cm
Feed line width = 0.127 cm (50ȍ line)
The above values were used as initial inputs and the
dimensions of the antenna were optimized in the EM
simulator ADS Momentum® to achieve the desired return
loss at the resonant frequency.
The centre frequency selected in the tuning range was 1.85
GHz corresponding to a varactor capacitance of 1.25 pF. The
aperture is a rectangular slot and provides coupling of energy
from the feedline to the patch and it does not affect the
resonant frequency. But, in the case of a tunable antenna, the
dimensions of the aperture affect the tuning range and the
return loss of the antenna. Further, if the slot length is
increased beyond a point, the back lobe level of the antenna
increases.
For an aperture coupled microstrip patch antenna, the slot
width should be one-tenth of the slot length [4]. In a tunable
antenna, varying the slot width helps to obtain good
impedance matching over the tuning range.
Two varactors, one at the centre of each radiating edge of
the patch, were used to provide tuning. A bias decoupling
network was designed to bias the varactor diodes. The
purpose of the bias de-coupling network is to provide
isolation between the RF signals and DC power supply. A
capacitor of 2400pF and a choke inductor of 22nH were
selected for the bias de-coupling network. Since the bias
network is on the same side as the feed substrate, it does not
affect the radiation characteristics of the antenna. Hence the
biasing network can be placed anywhere on the feed substrate.
The biasing network must also be included in the Fig.8. Measured Return loss plot of the antenna
electromagnetic simulations.
The wire used to provide DC bias for the varactor should
be placed such that it does not have any effect on the fields
between the patch and the ground plane. It is advisable to
place the wire at the non-radiating edge of the patch. The wire
model must also be included in the simulations.

V. TUNABLE APERTURE COUPLED MICROSTRIP PATCH

ANTENNA MEASUREMENTS
The photographs of the tunable aperture coupled microstrip
patch antenna are shown in Fig. 7.

Fig.9. Tuning curves of the microstrip antenna

CONCLUSIONS
Design guidelines for tunable microstrip and coplanar patch
antennas have been presented for the first time. The measured
tuning ranges of the coplanar and microstrip patch antennas
are 240 MHz and 875 MHz respectively. Both the antennas
have a gain of about 2 dB in the tuning range.

Fig. 7 Photographs of the tunable aperture-coupled microstrip
patch antenna
The measured results matched well with simulation results.
The antenna has a tuning range of 1.086GHz (1.184- 2.27
GHz). The measured tuning range for return loss greater than
10dB is 875 MHz. Tuning ranges obtained from simulation
and measurements of the antenna are summarized in Table II.
The measured return loss vs. frequency is shown in Fig. 8.
The simulation and measured resonant frequency vs. varactor
voltage is shown in Fig. 9.
TABLE II
SIMULATION AND MEASURED TUNING RANGES OF THE
MICROSTRIP PATCH ANTENNA
REFERENCES
[1] Constantine. A. Balanis, Antenna Theory Analysis and Design, second
edition, John Wiley, 1997.
[2] Rainee. N. Simons, Coplanar Waveguide Circiuts Components and
Systems, John Wiley and sons, 2001.
[3] M. Ramesh and YIP KB, “Design formula for Inset Fed Microstrip
Patch Antenna”, Journal of Microwave and Optoelectronics, Vol.3,
No.3, December 2003.
[4] G.A. Kyriacou, O. Breinbserg and J.N. Sahalos, “Aperture Coupled
Microstrip Antennas: A design approach” Proc. of ComCon 7, Athens,
Greece, June 28- July 2, 1999.
[5] B. R. Holland, R. Ramadoss, S. Pandey, and P. Agrawal, “Tunable
Coplanar Patch Antenna using a Varactor,” IEE Electronics Letters,
vol. 42, no. 6, pp. 319- 320, Mar. 2006.
[6] G. Le Ray, M.Himdi, and J. P. Daniel, “Frequency agile slot-fed patch
antenna”, Electronic Letter, vol. 32, pp.1229-1230, Jan 1996.
[7] K.C. Gupta, Inder Bahl and Ramesh Garg, Microstrip lines and slot
lines, Artech House, March 1996.
[8] Aparna Sankarasubramaniam, “Tunable Coplanar Patch Antenna”,
Master's Capstone Research Project, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, Bradley University, Peoria, Illinois, U.S.A.,
2007.
[9] Krishna Katragadda, “Frequency reconfigurable Aperture Coupled
Microstrip Patch Antenna”, Master's Capstone Research Project,,
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Bradley
University, Peoria, Illinois, U.S.A., 2005.

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