Antenna Isolation Investigation of an In-Band Full-Duplex System on an Airborne Pod

Pilot training for defense applications can be enhanced with live, virtual, and constructed (LVC) operations that create more interesting testing scenarios in a cost-effective manner. The added data payload to support the new virtual and constructed elements, however, necessitates more efficient use of the communications links between the ground control station and airborne aircraft. In-band full-duplex (IBFD) technology can be utilized to increase the channel throughput when the resulting self-interference is mitigated. This paper presents an investigation of antenna isolation for an airborne pod that can support future LVC testing. The bare pod was measured to provide roughly 50 dB of isolation between two co-polarized dipole antennas at 1.8 GHz, where this metric can be used to inform the overall IBFD system design.