Thesis on PIFA

A MULTIBAND PIFA ANTENNA FOR MOBILE DEVICES

Presented By : Under the Guidance of :

Naveen Kumar Garima Saini

M.E. ECE (Regular 2011) Assistant Professor , ECE Deptt.

NITTTR, Chandigarh NITTTR, Chandigarh

Outline

Introduction Antennas for Mobile Handheld Devices Planar Inverted-F Antenna (PIFA) Structure Comparison between various antenna structures

Literature Survey Inferences Drawn Problem Definition

Objectives Design Methodology Simulations & Results Conclusion Future Scope Publications References

April 12, 2023National Institute of Technical Teacher's Training & Research, Chandigarh

Introduction


Introduction

An Antenna converts electromagnetic radiation into electric current, or

vice versa.

Need of Antenna :

For transmission and reception of the radio signal.

Antennas are required by any radio receiver or transmitter to couple its

electrical connection to the electromagnetic field.

For electromagnetic waves carry signals through the air (or through

space) at the speed of light with almost no transmission loss.

Wireless performance is completely dependent on a high performance

antenna design and implementation.


Antennas for Mobile devices

The type of antenna that is used with a particular type of phone is normally

determined by dimensional considerations and specific absorption rate (SAR)

regulations.

One has to make some kind of compromise among volume, impedance

bandwidth and radiation characteristics of an antenna while making the smallest

possible antenna.

Antenna used in mobile handheld devices supporting several frequency bands

can have one of the following structure :

Single band Antenna

Multiband Antenna

Reconfigurable antenna


Antennas for Mobile devices (Contd.)

Following are main types of antennas used in cellular phones:

External Antennas

Monopoles (whips)

Helical

Internal Antennas

Microstrip antennas (MSA)

Planar inverted-F antennas (PIFA)


Comparison Table

Antenna Type/

Parameters

Monopole Slot Microstrip Patch

PIFA

Radiation Pattern

Omnidirectional Roughly Omnidirectional Directional Omnidirectional

Gain High Moderate High Moderate to high

Modeling & Fabrication

Modeling is somewhat difficult

Fabrication on PCB can be done.

Easier to fabricate and model

Easier fabrication using PCB

Applications Radio Broadcasting, vehicular antenna

Radar, Cell Phone base stations

Satellite Communication, Aircrafts

Internal antennas of Mobile phones

Merits Compact size,Low fabrication cost and simple to manufacture, Large bandwidth support

Radiation characteristics remains unchanged due to tuning, Design simplicity

Low cost, Low weight, Easy in integration

Small size, Low cost, Reduced backward radiation for minimizing SAR

Problems Difficult fabrication at higher frequencies (>3GHz)

Size constraint for mobile handheld devices

No bandpass filtering effect, surface-area requirement

Narrow bandwidth characteristic


Planar Inverted-F Antenna (PIFA)

PIFA is also referred to as short-circuited

microstrip antenna due to the fact that its structure

resembles to short-circuit MSA.

The shorting post near the feed point of PIFA

structure is a good method for reducing the

antenna size, but this result into the narrow

impedance bandwidth which is one of the

limitations.

By varying the size of the ground plane, the

bandwidth of a PIFA can be adjusted and

optimized.

The location and spacing between two shorting

posts can be adjusted accordingly.

L

W

Ground Plane

Radiating Patch

Feed point

h

LpWp

Typical PIFA Structure


Basic Equation

Lp + Wp = λ/4 (1)

Where Lp is Top patch length

Wp is Top patch Width

λ is wavelength corresponding to resonant frequency

When W/Lp=1 then

Lp + h = λ/4 (2)

When W=0 then

Lp + Wp + h = λ/4 (3)


Effect of Parameter Variation in PIFA

Parameters Effects

Length Determines resonance frequency

Width Control impedance matching

Height Control Bandwidth

Width of shorting plate Effect on the anti-resonance and increase bandwidth

Feed position from

shorting plate

Effect on resonance frequency and bandwidth


Literature Survey


Literature Survey [1] 1.pdf

Rashid Ahmad Bhatti, Ngoc-Anh Nguyen, Viet-Anh Nguyen and Seong ook Park, “Design of

a Compact Internal Antenna for Multi-Band Personal Communication Handsets”, IEEE

Proceedings of Asia-Pacific Microwave Conference, Page(s):1-4, 2007.

● Authors proposed a compact multiband antenna with reduced height.

● Proposed antenna operates at DCS, PCS, UMTS, WiBro, ISM/Bluetooth and WLAN 5

GHz bands.

● F-shaped slot is created on the top radiating patch and its dimensions are optimized to

enhance band coverage of 5 GHz band.

● The total volume of the antenna is 1.5 cm3.

Conclusion :

● Use of extra shorting strip enhances bandwidth at lower band while slot on the patch

enhances bandwidth at higher band. The height of the PIFA is less compared to

conventional structures thus, reducing overall volume.April 12, 2023National Institute of Technical Teacher's Training & Research, Chandigarh


A. Cabedo, J. Anguera, C. Picher, M. Ribo and C. Puente, “Multiband Handset Antenna

Combining a PIFA, Slots, and Ground Plane Modes”, IEEE Transactions On Antennas

And Propagation, Vol. 57, No. 9, Page(s): 2526 – 2533, 2009.

Authors proposed PIFA structure along with slots on the ground plane.

Antenna covers low frequencies (GSM 850/900) & high frequencies (DCS, PCS,

Bluetooth, UMTS).

Three slots are used which has two functions mainly i.e. to tune the ground plane

resonance at low frequencies & to act as parasitic radiator at high frequencies.

Conclusion :

Use of slots on ground plane enhances bandwidth both at low & high frequencies

without increase in the volume of the antenna.



Sinhyung Jeon, Hyengcheul Choi, and Hyeongdong Kim, “Hybrid Planar Inverted-F

Antenna with a T-shaped slot on the ground plane”, ETRI Journal, Vol. 31, No. 5,

Page(s): 616-618, 2009.

●A novel antenna was proposed by authors. The structure make use of T-shaped ground

plane along with rectangular patch to achieve resonance at desired frequencies.

●The frequency bands covered by the antenna are DCS, WiBro, Bluetooth and S-DMB

bands.

Conclusion :

●The structure of top patch is simple in construction and introduction of T-shaped slot on

ground plane resulted in resonance at 2.4 GHz band with enhanced bandwidth coverage.



H.F. Abu Tarboush, R. Nilavalan, T. Peter and S.W. Cheung, “Multiband Inverted-F

Antenna With Independent Bands for Small and Slim Cellular Mobile Handsets”,

IEEE Transactions On Antennas And Propagation, Vol. 59, No. 7, Page(s): 2636 – 2645,

2011.

Proposed antenna design have independent control on the resonant frequency bands

which are UMTS(2.09 GHz), m-WiMax(3.74 GHz) & WLAN (5 GHz).

The structure consists of slotted radiator supported by shorting walls and small

ground plane.

Conclusion :

Ground plane of the antenna has minimal effect on performance and it is also not

too sensitive to human hand and phone housing.

Electronics components can be placed closer to the antenna resulting in overall size

even more compact and thin.April 12, 2023National Institute of Technical Teacher's Training & Research, Chandigarh


C. Picher, J. Angueral, A. Andújar, C. Puente1, and S. Kahng, “Analysis of the Human

Head Interaction in Handset Antennas with Slotted Ground Planes”, IEEE Antennas

and Propagation Magazine, Vol. 54, No. 2, Page(s): 36 – 56, 2012.

●Authors studied and analyzed different configurations of slotted ground plane for human

head interaction.

●Results showed that the slots on the ground plane are useful in increasing bandwidth

coverage and efficiency of the antenna structure.

●Authors observed that interaction of human head with the antenna adds losses to antenna

affecting efficiency and radiation patterns.

Conclusion :

●Analysis showed that PIFA with two open ended slots performs well as compared to PIFA

without slots covering more number of frequency bands.


Inferences Drawn

Now-a-days more and more radios are being integrated into single wireless

platform to allow maximum connectivity and ever increasing need of having

several functionalities in devices.

Multiband antenna approach using PIFA structure results in size reduction, low

SAR values, enhanced bandwidth coverage and good gain. These can be achieved

by employing several techniques to modify the basic structure and using ground

plane to support the main patch.

PIFA is also good choice to be used for LTE and WiMAX bands as for MIMO

applications, antennas small in size with good isolation are required.


Problem Definition

Single-band antenna supports only one or two frequencies of wireless service. And these

days more & more wireless standards are being supported by the devices. So they

employ several antennas for each standard.

This leads to large space requirement in handheld devices.

One foreseen associated problem with the antenna design for such devices is to cover 4G

LTE bands while still covering DCS 1800, PCS 1900, UMTS 2100, WiMAX and

WLAN/Bluetooth bands.

Thus, due to space constraints in mobile devices, covering multiple bands with a single

antenna structure is the need of the hour.

Therefore, the thesis work is directed to make a multiband antenna and it can be

achieved by using low profile antenna structures like PIFA with additional features to

enhance the bandwidth coverage and other important performance parameters.


Objectives

The objectives of the Thesis work are as follows:


Design Methodology


Selection of Design Parameters PIFA structure is designed using HFSS software keeping some parameters in view

Parameter Value (mm) Parameter Value (mm)

Lg70 Wg1

1.2

Wg40 Lg2

22

Lp25 Wg2

2

Wp15 L1

36.7

Ls3.8 L2

11.5

Ws2.4 L3

27.3

H 1.6 L455

Lg112 L5

13


Simulations & Results


Proposed Designs

Proposed Design 1

Proposed Design 2

Proposed Design 1

Wp

Ls

Lg

h

Wgs

L2

L1

Wg

Ws

L3

Lp

Lgs

Detailed Dimensions 3D View in HFSS

Detailed Dimensions


Lg58 H 1.6

Wg40 Lgs

14

Lp25 Wgs

a1.5

Wp15 L1

36

Ls4 L2

21.9

Ws3.4 L3

15.6

Return Loss (S11)

Gain (dB)

3D Radiation Pattern

Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR)

Proposed Design 2


Detailed Dimensions 3D View in HFSS

Wp

Ls

Lg

h

Feed Wire

Ground Plane

Top Patch

L2

L1

Wg

L3

Wg2

L4

L5

Wg1

Lg1

Lp

Lg2

Ws

Detailed Dimensions


Lg70 Wg1

1.2

Wg40 Lg2

22

Lp25 Wg2

2

Wp15 L1

36.7

Ls3.8 L2

11.5

Ws2.4 L3

27.3

H 1.6 L455

Lg112 L5

13

Return Loss (S11)


1900 MHz

1311 MHz 2834 MHz 5172 MHz 5596 MHz

2.40 GHz

5.40 GHz

Gain (dB)


3D Radiation Pattern


Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR)


Validation of Results


Validation of Results

Antenna

Design/

Parameters

Volume

(mm3)

Resonant

Frequencies

Gain (dB) % Efficiency

(η)

Frequency Bands Covered

Design in [10] 1500 1.8 GHz, 2

GHz , 2.4 GHz

& 5 GHz

2.41, 2.86,

3.43 & 4.14

respectively

91, 92, 90 & 87

respectively

DCS (1710-1880 MHz), PCS

(1880-1990 MHz), UMTS (1900-

2200 MHz), WiBro (2300 - 2390

MHz), ISM / Bluetooth (2.4 - 2.48

GHz) and WLAN (5.1-5.9 GHz)

Proposed Design 1425 1.94 GHz, 2.42

GHz & 5.42

GHz

2.63, 4 &

6.18

respectively

96.9, 96.1 &

92.67

respectively

GPS L1 band (1575.42 MHz),

GLONASS-M L1 band (1602

MHz), DCS (1800 MHz), PCS

(1900 MHz), UMTS (2100 MHz),

Wi-Fi/Bluetooth (2.4 GHz), 4G

LTE (1.7 GHz, 2.3 GHz & 2.6

GHz), & WLAN (5.2 GHz).April 12, 2023National Institute of Technical Teacher's Training & Research, Chandigarh

Conclusion


Conclusion

There are few conclusions that can be drawn from this thesis work:

The designed multi-band antenna, built on PIFA structure, is very sensitive to any

changes to the dimensions of the structure including the ground plane.

Ground plane of the antenna is used as a radiator resulting in overall size reduction

and improvement in the operating bandwidth.

There is 5% reduction in overall volume of the proposed antenna as compared to

design in [10].

Also there is significant improvement in gain and radiation efficiencies at obtained

resonant frequencies.


Future Scope of the Work

The antenna prototype can be developed which can be used to study the

performance of the antenna with human interaction and investigate the Specific

Absorption Rate (SAR) value by employing human model testing.

The antenna structure can be placed inside a handheld device casing and it can be

analyzed using an Anechoic chamber.

The design proposed in this thesis work can be extended for supporting MIMO

applications for the devices which supports LTE and WiMAX technologies.


Publications

Naveen Kumar, Garima Saini, “A Novel Low Profile Planar Inverted-F Antenna

(PIFA) for Mobile Handsets”, International Journal of Scientific and Research

Publications (IJSRP), Volume 3, Issue 3, March 2013.

Naveen Kumar, Garima Saini, “A Compact Planar Inverted-F Antenna with

Slotted Ground Plane”, International Journal of Electronics & Communication

Technology (IJECT), Volume 4, Issue 2 Ver. 3, Page(s): 399-401, June 2013.

Naveen Kumar, Garima Saini, “A Multiband PIFA with Slotted Ground Plane for

Personal Communication Handheld Devices”, International Journal of

Engineering Research and Development (IJERD), Volume 7, Issue 11, Page(s): 70-

74, July 2013.


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References Contd.

12) Ya-Chung Yu and Jenn-Hwan Tarng, “A Novel Modified Multiband Planar Inverted-F Antenna”, IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters,

Vol. 8, Page(s): 189 – 192, 2009.

13) J. Cho, C.W. Jung and K. Kim , “Frequency-reconfigurable two-port antenna for mobile phone operating over multiple service bands”, IEEE

Electronics Letters, Vol. 45 No. 20, Page(s): 1009 – 1011, 2009.

14) A. Cabedo, J. Anguera, C. Picher, M. Ribo, C. Puente, “Multiband Handset Antenna Combining a PIFA, Slots, and Ground Plane Modes”, IEEE

Transactions On Antennas And Propagation, Vol. 57, No. 9, Page(s): 2526 – 2533, 2009.

15) H. Rhyu, J. Byun, F.J. Harackiewicz, M.J. Park, K. Jung, D. Kim, N. Kim, T. Kim, B. Lee, “Multi-band hybrid antenna for ultra-thin mobile phone

applications”, IEEE Electronics Letters, Vol. 45, No. 15, Page(s): 773 – 774, 2009.

16) Chih-Hsien Wu and Kin-Lu Wong, “Ultra wideband PIFA with a Capacitive Feed for Penta-Band Folder-Type Mobile Phone Antenna”, IEEE

Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 57, No. 8, Page(s): 2461 – 2464, 2009.

17) Sinhyung Jeon, Hyengcheul Choi, and Hyeongdong Kim, “Hybrid Planar Inverted-F Antenna with a T-shaped slot on the ground plane”, ETRI Journal,

Vol. 31, No. 5, Page(s): 616-618, 2009.

18) Houda Halheit, Andre’ Vander Vorst, “A Simple Wideband Antenna for Mobile Handset”, 3rd IEEE European Conference on Antennas and

Propagation, Page(s): 553-555, 2009.

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21) Jong-Hyuk Lim, Gyu-Tae Back, Young-Il Ko, Chang-Wook Song, Tae-Yeoul Yun, “A Reconfigurable PIFA Using a Switchable PIN-Diode and a

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References Contd.

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Vol. 9, Page(s): 1127 – 1130, 2010.

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Page(s): 189 – 190, 2010.

24) D. Kearney, M. John, M.J. Ammann, “Miniature Ceramic PIFA for UWB Band Groups 3 and 6”, IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, Vol.

9, Page(s): 28 – 31, 2010.

25) Hattan F. AbuTarboush, R. Nilavalan, T. Peter and S. W. Chuang, “Small and Thin Inverted-F Antenna with Insensitive Ground Plane for Mobile

Handsets”, IEEE Loughborough Antennas and Propagation Conference, Page(s): 109 – 112, 2010.

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and Mobile Computing, Page(s): 90 – 93, 2010.

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28) Jong-Hyuk Lim, Zhe-Jun Jin, and Tae-Yeoul Yun, “A Frequency Reconfigurable PIFA Using a PIN Diode for Mobile-WiMAX Applications”, IEEE

Intelligent Radio for Future Personal Terminals, International Microwave Workshop Series, Page(s): 1 – 2, 2011.

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Handset”, IEEE Transactions On Antennas And Propagation, Vol. 59, No. 1, Page(s): 336 – 339, 2011.

30) H.F. Abu Tarboush, R. Nilavalan, T. Peter, S.W. Cheung, “Multiband Inverted-F Antenna with Independent Bands for Small and Slim Cellular Mobile

Handsets”, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, Vol. 59, No. 7, Page(s): 2636 – 2645, 2011.

31) H.I. Hraga, C.H. See, R.A. Abd-Alhameed, D. Zhou, S. Adnan, I.T.E. Elfergani, F. Elmegri, P.S. Excell, “PIFA Antenna for UWB Applications with

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References Contd.

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33) C. Picher, J. Angueral, A. Andújar, C. Puente1, and S. Kahng, “Analysis of the Human Head Interaction in Handset Antennas with Slotted

Ground Planes”, IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine, Vol. 54, No. 2, Page(s): 36 – 56, 2012.

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