Design of a low cost television White Space Z antenna

Abstract

The use of Television White Spaces (TVWS) for broadband communication has raised interest of late. In respect of rural areas, wireless is the only viable alternative for providing affordable telecommunications services. One limiting factor to the growth of wireless broadband penetration is the lack of available spectrum. White Spaces refer to regions of radio spectrum that are not used all the time in a specific geographical location. An assessment study on TV White Spaces availability in Malawi using affordable tools has been described and it was concluded that it is possible to assess the spectrum usage using low cost equipment. In this paper, the design aspects and the measured results of a low cost Television White Space Z antenna are described.