Universal broadband antenna elements employing metallized plastics technology

A new type of antenna element has been developed. It combines a pair of crossed dipoles and a planar feed network. Large bandwidth and polarizationversatile performance is obtained. The radiator is a single, metallized plastic part suitable for use in an automated surface mounting process. With an impedance bandwidth of more than 20%, one proposed design covers aU the cellular phone bauds around 2G&, while the other radiator with 35% bandwidth can be used for all UN11 (802.16a) frequencies around 5.5GHz. High-gain arrays and smart antennas can be produced efficiently using the proposed radiators.