Mobile-integrated SRR-based four-port MIMO antenna for broadband mm-wave 5G applications

A low-profile, single-layered, compact-size, highly-isolated four-port MIMO antenna integrated within a 5 G smartphone has been proposed for a futuristic mm-wave broadband communication system. The proposed MIMO antenna configuration has been derived from a conventional inset-fed rectangular microstrip patch by introducing two parallel I-shaped slots on the patch surface for operating over a wide bandwidth of 4.91 GHz, that is, from 26.78 to 31.69 GHz. The antenna geometry has an overall dimension of 20.9 mm x 20.9 mm x 0.787 mm. The proposed configuration attained a maximum gain of 8.11 dBi and radiation efficiency of 90% at 28 GHz resonating frequency. The integration of the square-shaped SRR structure among closely packed antenna elements has significantly enhanced the overall isolation by 13 dB without compromising the antenna's physical dimensions. The realisation of the S-parameters has also been carried out from the equivalent circuit model to agree with the results obtained from the electromagnetic simulation through CST software. The measured radiation patterns assured the minimal variation with simulated characteristics along the E and H planes. A comprehensive safety investigation of the proposed MIMO antenna has been carried out to assess power densities (<10 W/m(2)) across different usage modes, including data, reading, and talking in a mobile application perspective. Several diversity parameters, including ECC (<0.0001), DG (>9.999 dB), CCL (<0.12 bits/sec/Hz), MEG, and TARC, have also been evaluated as performance metrics. Furthermore, the linear transmission property of the proposed MIMO antenna has been validated through the variation of group delay (<0.5 ns) over operating frequency bands in the far-field region.