A Wideband Patch Antenna With Dual-Cylindrical Probe Feed

A broadband air-loaded patch antenna is presented in this letter. The antenna is differentially fed by two capacitively coupled thick cylindrical probes carefully integrated with the radiator to enhance the overall mechanical integrity. The coupling between the ports is reduced by a metallic wall symmetrically placed between the probes and firmly attached to the patch. The designed antenna has 48% bandwidth defined for broadside gain above 8 dBi, VSWR < 2:1, and port isolation > 11 dB. This bandwidth increases to 56% if desired gain is above 5 dBi. High levels of cross-polarization rejection and pattern stability are also demonstrated. The design is conducted using commercial finite-element software, and the performance is verified with thorough measurements.