Circularly Polarized Wideband Yagi-Uda Array on a Kresling Origami Structure

Abstract

In this paper, a circularly polarized, wideband, high gain antenna supported by an origami structure is presented. This antenna consists of a Yagi-Uda inspired end-fire array of crossed bowties. An ideal phase shift was implemented to obtain a circular polarization. Each element of the proposed array is printed on FR-4 substrate and inserted in different sections of a Kresling origami pattern. The proposed antenna exhibits wideband operation from 200 to 350 MHz (54.5%), where S11≤ −10 dB and axial ratio≤ 3 dB are maintained. High gain (7 to 9 dBc) is achieved by such an array of parasitic elements. The origami structure allows a compact stowage (i.e, packaging efficiency of ~95%) as well as fast and easy deployment. The antenna design procedure and analysis are also discussed in this paper.