Ultra-Wideband Low-cost Light-weight 3D-Printed Dielectric Rod Antenna

This paper presents a microstrip-line-excited ultra-wideband dielectric rod antenna manufactured using 3D printing technology. The design adopts a three-stage transition structure from the microstrip line to a 3D parallel lines, to the dielectric rod, and then to free space. Thanks to the flexibility of the 3D printing structure, ultra-wideband impedance matching and gain bandwidth is achieved within a very short transition length (About 1.1 lambda(min), lambda(min) is the wavelength at the minimum operating frequency). Compared to traditional waveguide-fed structures, the use of bulky metal structures and complex manufacturing process can be avoided. To verify the proposed design conecpt, the antenna was fabricated and tested. Test results show that the impedance bandwidth covers 6-16 GHz, with gain variation less than 3.5dB within this range, a peak gain of 13.3 dBi, and an efficiency greater than 60%. The overall dimensions of the antenna are 0.3 lambda x0.8 lambda x2.6 lambda @6GHz, with a weight of approximately 42g (excluding connectors). It has the advantages of low-cost, small size, and light-weight, making it very suitable for applications in ultra-wideband devices with small form factors.