Gain enhancement with near-zero-index metamaterial superstrate

The objective of this paper was to use a near-zero-index (n) metamaterial as a single- or a double-layer superstrate suspended above a microstrip patch antenna, operating at 43 GHz, for the gain enhancement. The single metamaterial layer superstrate consists of a periodic arrangement of Jerusalem cross unit cells and behaves as an homogeneous medium characterized by a refractive index close to zero. This metamaterial property allows gathering radiated waves from the antenna and collimates them toward the superstrate normal direction. The proposed design improves the antenna gain by 5.1 dB with the single-layer superstrate and 7 dB with the double-layer superstrate.

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