Unidirectional miniaturized slot antennas

A technique for designing unidirectional miniaturized slot antennas is presented in this paper. Our approach takes advantage of the simultaneous application of two different techniques used to reduce the lateral dimensions of a shallow cavity-backed slot antenna. Reduction of antenna length (including the cavity) is achieved by inductively loading the slot antenna with a number of distributed inductors to increase its electrical length. Reduction of the antenna width is achieved by modifying the ground plane around the slot by using a patterned ground plane with a specific pattern placed around the slot antenna. The combination of these two miniaturization techniques allows for reducing the occupied area by the antenna by a factor larger than 82%.