A Self-Adapting, Pixelized Planar Antenna Design for Infrared Frequencies

Infrared antennas with reconfigurable characteristics offer several advantages in the medical, military, telecommunication and energy harvesting areas, while their design and implementation is a particularly challenging task for the researchers. This paper proposes a pixel antenna, designed for mid-infrared frequencies with a bandwidth more than 25 THz, consisting of 3 × 3 square metallic planar patches. Bolometer-based switches are placed between the adjacent pixels in order to obtain the adaptable characteristics, optimized for the incoming infrared radiation. The incident wave from a certain direction will heat up the bolometers. Consequently, the conductivity of these bolometers (PTC) will be decreased, and as a result they can be considered to turn to OFF state. The simulation results suggest that the proposed structure can steer the antenna pattern toward the direction of the incident radiation in an adaptable manner, thereby considerably increasing the antenna gain. The gain of the antenna can be increased up to 2 dB with respect to the reference one, which makes it a promising structure for various applications.