Engineering and Technology
| Open Access | Investigating a dual-band microstrip patch antenna for sub-6 GHz wireless communication: design and characterization
Dr. Chen Liang , School of Electronic and Information Engineering, South China University of Technology, China Dr. Zhao Hui , Department of Communication Engineering, Harbin Institute of Technology, ChinaAbstract
This paper presents the design, simulation, and characterization of a dual-band microstrip patch antenna intended for sub-6 GHz wireless communication applications. The proposed antenna incorporates a rectangular patch with optimized slots and a partial ground plane to achieve dual-band operation while maintaining a compact form factor. Detailed parametric studies were conducted to fine-tune the resonant frequencies and impedance bandwidths. The antenna was fabricated on an FR4 substrate, and its performance was evaluated using both simulation and experimental measurements. Results demonstrate that the antenna operates effectively across two frequency bands—centered at 3.5 GHz and 5.2 GHz—with satisfactory return loss, radiation patterns, and gain characteristics suitable for modern wireless systems such as 5G and WLAN. The findings highlight the potential of the proposed design for integration into portable and low-profile wireless communication devices.
Keywords
Dual-band antenna, microstrip patch antenna, sub-6 GHz, wireless communication
References
Balanis, C. A. (2016). Antenna theory: Analysis and design (4th ed.). Wiley.
Kumar, G., & Ray, K. P. (2003). Broadband microstrip antennas. Artech House.
Garg, R., Bhartia, P., Bahl, I., & Ittipiboon, A. (2001). Microstrip antenna design handbook. Artech House.
Nasimuddin, N., Esselle, K. P., & Verma, A. K. (2003). Compact dual-band stacked square microstrip antenna. Electronics Letters, 39(11), 809–811. https://doi.org/10.1049/el:20030555
Kumar, R., & Sharma, N. (2019). Design and analysis of a compact dual-band microstrip patch antenna for 5G applications. International Journal of Microwave and Wireless Technologies, 11(9), 891–897. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1759078719000491
Zhang, S., & Ying, Z. (2016). Dual-band antenna design for 5G smartphone applications. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, 65(12), 5986–5994. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAP.2017.2754463
Mishra, R. N., & Dwari, S. (2020). A compact dual-band antenna for sub-6 GHz 5G communication. Microwave and Optical Technology Letters, 62(2), 776–781. https://doi.org/10.1002/mop.32025
Patel, V., & Upadhyaya, T. (2018). Dual-band microstrip patch antenna for wireless communication applications. International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology, 7(5), 138–141.
Kaur, M., & Singh, S. (2020). Design and analysis of dual-band microstrip antenna with defected ground structure for wireless applications. Progress In Electromagnetics Research M, 89, 19–28. https://doi.org/10.2528/PIERM20072702
Guha, D., & Antar, Y. M. M. (2011). Microstrip and printed antennas: New trends, techniques and applications. Wiley.
Li, R., & Tentzeris, M. M. (2006). Dual-band slot-loaded patch antenna for wireless local area network applications. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, 54(2), 660–664. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAP.2005.863097
Bahl, I., & Bhartia, P. (1980). Microstrip antennas. Artech House.
Luo, G. Q., Hong, W., Zhang, H., & Wu, K. (2007). Analysis and design of planar dual-band antennas for wireless communications. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, 55(11), 3220–3227. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAP.2007.908569
Mandal, K., & Sarkar, P. (2019). Design of dual-band microstrip patch antenna with frequency selective surface reflector for 5G applications. Microwave and Optical Technology Letters, 61(1), 161–167. https://doi.org/10.1002/mop.31502
Tiwari, M., & Gupta, N. (2020). Design and analysis of dual-band antenna for sub-6 GHz 5G wireless applications. International Journal of RF and Microwave Computer-Aided Engineering, 30(12), e22438. https://doi.org/10.1002/mmce.22438
Wong, K. L. (2002). Compact and broadband microstrip antennas. Wiley.
Mishra, R. N., & Chaudhary, R. K. (2019). Dual-band MIMO antenna for 5G smartphone applications. Electronics Letters, 55(14), 791–793. https://doi.org/10.1049/el.2019.1392
Janghel, R., & Yadav, R. (2018). Dual-band microstrip patch antenna for wireless LAN and WiMAX applications. Wireless Personal Communications, 100(2), 385–396. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11277-018-5610-6
Ramanujam, S., & Saravanan, S. (2021). Design and development of dual-band antenna for 5G and WLAN applications. International Journal of Electronics and Communications, 127, 153475. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.aeue.2020.153475
Rawat, P., & Kumar, A. (2020). A compact dual-band antenna with slot-loaded patch for sub-6 GHz applications. Progress In Electromagnetics Research C, 105, 169–182. https://doi.org/10.2528/PIERC20063002
Chen, Z. N. (2006). Broadband planar antennas: Design and applications. Wiley.
Ansari, M. A. H., Verma, A. K., & Akhtar, M. J. (2012). Design of stacked patches microstrip antenna for dual-band operation. International Journal of Microwave Science and Technology, 2012, 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1155/2012/967501
Chen, Z. N., & Chia, M. Y. W. (2006). Broadband planar antennas: Design and applications. Wiley.
Nasimuddin, N., Verma, A. K., & Esselle, K. P. (2007). Wideband circularly polarized microstrip antennas with a new single-feed technique. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, 55(2), 510–513. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAP.2006.889992
Zhao, L., Hong, W., Yu, C., Wu, K., & Zhou, J. (2013). Wideband and dual-band patch antennas with hybrid feeding structures. IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, 61(6), 3056–3062. https://doi.org/10.1109/TAP.2013.2254713
Nie, Z., Wang, J., He, S., & Wang, X. (2011). A dual-band microstrip antenna with compact size and high isolation for MIMO applications. IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, 10, 883–886. https://doi.org/10.1109/LAWP.2011.2169999
Zhang, S., & Pedersen, G. F. (2016). Mutual coupling reduction for UWB MIMO antennas with dual polarization. IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, 15, 80–83. https://doi.org/10.1109/LAWP.2015.2436356
Shanmuganantham, T., & Raghavan, S. (2008). Dual-band E-shaped microstrip patch antenna for WLAN applications. Microwave and Optical Technology Letters, 50(9), 2402–2405. https://doi.org/10.1002/mop.23720
Mahalakshmi, S., & Sundararajan, M. (2018). Dual-band microstrip antenna for 5G applications using Defected Ground Structure. International Journal of Electronics and Communication Engineering, 13(1), 1–6.
Kaur, J., & Marwaha, A. (2019). A review on dual-band microstrip patch antenna for wireless applications. International Journal of Engineering and Advanced Technology, 8(4), 34–38.
Reddy, M. N., & Reddy, B. V. (2019). Design of dual-band microstrip antenna for 5G applications. International Journal of Recent Technology and Engineering, 7(6), 324–328.
Islam, M. T., Misran, N., & Mandeep, J. S. (2010). Design analysis of microstrip patch antenna on different thickness of substrate. Progress In Electromagnetics Research, 67, 137–151. https://doi.org/10.2528/PIER06110601
Article Statistics
Copyright License
Copyright (c) 2025 Dr. Chen Liang, Dr. Zhao Hui
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Authors retain the copyright of their manuscripts, and all Open Access articles are disseminated under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License 4.0 (CC-BY), which licenses unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided that the original work is appropriately cited. The use of general descriptive names, trade names, trademarks, and so forth in this publication, even if not specifically identified, does not imply that these names are not protected by the relevant laws and regulations.