An Impedance-Matched 2-Element Superdirective Array

Abstract

With proper adjustment of the amplitude and phase of the element excitations, the directivity of an N-element end-fire array of isotropic radiators can approach N <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> as the spacing between the elements approaches zero. To achieve this end-fire superdirectivity for a 2-element array, the excitation phase difference between the elements must closely approach 180deg. When closely spaced elements are driven nearly 180deg out-of-phase, the element radiation resistances approach zero, resulting in a high input Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR) and reduced radiation efficiency. At the same time, there is also a significant decrease in the operating bandwidth. In this letter we present the design of a 2-element, superdirective multiple arm folded monopole array that achieves a near 50 Omega input radiation resistance at each element, resulting in a matched input VSWR, higher radiation efficiency and therefore, a substantial increase in realized or overall efficiency.