A systematic approach to directivity enhancement of microstrip antennas using an EBG or dielectric superstrate

Perhaps there is no single topic that has elicited more attention, and has created more excitement in the scientific community in recent years, as that of Metamaterials. In this talk we will begin by reviewing the fundamentals of Metamaterials by asking the question: “How do we categorize metamaterials and derive their effective medium properties?” We will then go on to address a related question that is very relevant from the point of view of a practicing engineer, namely: “How can they help us build better ‘widgets’, such as flat superlenses, highly-directive small antennas, miniaturized sensors, cloaks that make objects invisible [1] and devices that exhibit extraordinary transmission (EOT). (See Figs. 1 through 4)