Evolving wire antennas using genetic algorithms: a review

Communication, radar and remote sensing systems employ thousands of different types of wire antennas, and there is an increasing need for high-performance, customized antennas. Current methods of designing and optimizing them by hand using simulation or analysis are time- and labor-intensive, limit complexity, increase the cost and time expended, and require that antenna engineers have significant knowledge of the universe of antenna designs. Local optimization methods are not much better, since an initial guess that is close to the final design must be provided. Using a genetic algorithm (GA), it is possible to prescribe the desired performance of an antenna and allow the computer to find the parameters for the design. The GA does not require an initial guess, and the amount of design information the engineer must supply can be very minimal. This paper presents a review of a few wire antennas from previous publications designed by GA unconventional purposes. This approach has potential to revolutionize antenna design.