On the design of a dual-band, switched-beam antenna array with constant excitation coefficients

Abstract

A new technique is proposed for the design of dual-band, switched-beam, wire antenna arrays, using the method of genetic algorithms (GA's). The main goal of the proposed technique is the preservation of constant excitation coefficients during operation at different frequency bands. This is accomplished by jointly optimizing the array's technical characteristics for operation at both frequency bands, while properly exploiting mutual coupling between array elements. Numerical results are presented in the case of a uniform, eight-element circular array, with radiation characteristics specified for the 2.4–2.4835 GHz and 3.4–3.8 GHz frequency bands, and excellent agreement to design considerations is demonstrated.