This thesis includes the design, production and measurement of a wideband dualpolarized X-band aperture-coupled microstrip patch antenna. The wideband and dual-polarized operation is achieved through the use of H-shaped coupling slots. Therefore, the equivalent circuit modeling of a microstrip line fed H-shaped slot is also studied in this thesis. A step-by-step procedure is followed during the design process of the dual-polarized aperture-coupled microstrip antenna. First, an aperture-coupled microstrip antenna with a single rectangular slot, that exhibits a wideband characteristic for single polarization, is designed. Then, the design procedure is repeated for an antenna with H-shaped slot in order to satisfy the same specifications with a shorter slot. Finally, dual-polarized aperture-coupled microstrip antenna is designed. At this configuration, two H-shaped slots are used and they are placed orthogonal to each other. During the design process, the effects of antenna parameters on the input impedance characteristics of the antenna are investigated. These parametric analyses are done in CST Microwave Studio&reg / . The v designed dual-polarized wideband aperture-coupled microstrip antenna is manufactured. Simulation results and measurement results are compared. During the equivalent circuit modeling of an H-shaped slot fed by a microstrip line, an approach based on the reciprocity theorem is utilized. The method was originally proposed for rectangular shaped slots, in this thesis it is generalized for arbitrarily shaped slots. Software codes are developed in MATLAB to calculate the equivalent impedance of the slot.

Full wave analysis of microstrip lines at microwave frequencies is performed by using method of moments in conjunction with closed-form spatial domain Green&rsquo / s functions. The Green&rsquo / s functions are in general Sommerfeld-type integrals which are computationally expensive. To improve the efficiency of the technique, Green&rsquo / s functions are approximated by their closed-forms. Microstrip lines are excited by arbitrarily located current sources and are terminated by complex loads at both ends. Current distributions over microstrip lines are represented by rooftop basis functions. At first step, the current distribution over a single microstrip line is calculated. Next, the calculation of the current distributions over coupled microstrip lines is performed. The technique is then, applied to directional couplers. Using the current distributions obtained by the analysis, the scattering parameters of the structures are evaluated by using Prony&rsquo / s method. The results are compared with the ones gathered by using simulation software tools, CNL/2&trade / and Agilent Advanced Design System&trade / (ADS).

Wideband and dual band stacked microstrip patch antennas are investigated for the new wideband and dual band applications in the area of telecommunications. In this thesis, aperture-coupled stacked patch antennas are used to increase the bandwidth of the microstrip patch antenna. By this technique, antennas with 51% bandwidth at 6.1 GHz and 43% bandwidth at 8 GHz satisfying S11&lt / -15 dB are designed, manufactured and measured. A dual-band aperture coupled stacked microstrip patch antenna operating at 1.8 GHz with 3.8% bandwidth and at 2.4 GHz with 1.6% bandwidth is designed, produced and measured for mobile phone and WLAN applications. In addition, an aperture coupled stacked microstrip patch antenna which operates at PCS frequencies in 1.7-1.95 GHz band is designed. Dual and circularly polarized stacked aperture coupled microstrip patch antennas are also investigated. A triple band dual polarized aperture coupled stacked microstrip patch antenna is designed to operate at 900 MHz, at 1.21 GHZ and at 2.15 GHz. Mutual coupling between aperture coupled stacked microstrip patch antennas are examined and compared with the coupling of aperture coupled microstrip patch antennas

Avui dia cada vegada s'ha de tenir més en compte com es realitza el traçat de pistes en les plaques de circuit imprès (PCB). Això és degut a que cada vegada més hi viatgen senyals amb components freqüencials més elevades. Per tant, paràmetres com la desadaptació per impedància característica, acoblaments, ressonàncies i comportaments complexes de les transicions que es troben els senyals en la seva propagació per les pistes, han de ser considerats per evitar problemes d'integritat del senyal i garantir la compatibilitat electromagnètica (EMC) amb el seu entorn. El present treball de tesi s'ha centrat en l'estudi del comportament d'una situació particular, però molt habitual, de pistes: dues pistes sobre un pla de massa, formant el que es coneix com una línia de transmissió microstrip acoblada. Els senyals que viatgen a través d'una línia microstrip acoblada es poden descompondre en dos modes bàsics de propagació: mode comú (on la tensió està definida entre el pla de massa i cada pista) i el mode diferencial (on la tensió està definida entre les pistes). Aquesta descomposició és molt habitual en el món de la compatibilitat electromagnètica ja que les tècniques de filtratge de les interferències varien depenent si aquestes viatgen en mode comú o en mode diferencial. El treball desenvolupat s'ha focalitzat en l'estudi, des d'aquest punt de vista multimodal (que té en compte simultàniament tant el mode comú com el diferencial), de les diferents transicions que es pot trobar el senyal en la seva propagació degut al traçat de pistes. Com a resultat d'aquest estudi s'han obtingut uns models circuitals que permeten l'anàlisi i simulació dels diferents modes que intervenen i que han estat validats de forma experimental. Aquest fet ha permès l'ús d'aquests models en l'anàlisi de problemes d'integritat del senyal que són comuns en el entorn de la compatibilitat electromagnètica (EMC). Els resultats obtinguts han estat presentats en congressos nacionals i internacionals. / Hoy en día cada vez se debe tener más en cuenta como se realiza el trazado de pistas en las placas de circuito impreso (PCB). Esto es así debido a que cada vez más viajan por ellas señales con componentes frecuenciales más elevadas. Por lo tanto, parámetros como la desadaptación por impedancia característica, acoplamientos, resonancias y comportamientos complejos de las transiciones que se encuentran las señales mientras se propagan por las pistas, deben ser tenidos en consideración para evitar problemas de integridad de la señal y garantizar la compatibilidad electromagnética (EMC) con su entorno. En el presente trabajo de tesis se ha centrado en el estudio del comportamiento de una situación particular, pero habitual, de pistas: dos pistas sobre un plano de masa, formando lo que se conoce como línea de transmisión microstrip acoplada. Las señales que viajan a través de una línea microstrip acoplada se pueden descomponer en dos modos básicos de propagación: modo común (donde la tensión está definida entre el plano de masa y cada pista) y modo diferencial (donde la tensión está definida entre pistas). Esta descomposición es muy habitual en el mundo de la compatibilidad electromagnética ya que las técnicas de filtrado de las interferencias varían dependiendo si estas viajan en modo común o en modo diferencial. El trabajo desarrollado se ha focalizado en el estudio, desde este punto de vista multimodal (que tiene en cuenta simultáneamente tanto el modo común como el diferencial), de las diferentes transiciones que puede encontrarse la señal durante su propagación debido al trazado de pistas. Como resultado se han obtenido unos modelos circuitales que permiten el análisis y simulación de los diferentes modos que intervienen y que han sido validados de forma experimental. Este hecho ha permitido el uso de dichos modelos en el análisis de problemas de integridad de la señal que son comunes en el entorno de la compatibilidad electromagnética (EMC). Los resultados obtenidos han sido mostrados en congresos nacionales e internacionales. / Nowadays, the placement of the strips in a printed circuit board (PCB) has to be performed with increasing care, because of the rise of the spectral content of the signals propagating through the strips. Due to this fact, mismatches of the characteristic impedances, crosstalks, resonances and complex behavior of the transitions that the signals may encounter in their propagation have to be considered in order to avoid signal integrity problems and to guarantee the electromagnetic compatibility with their environment. This work is focused on the study of the behavior of a particular, but also a very common way of routing strips: two close strips above a ground plane, forming a extit{coupled microstrip transmission line}. The signals present at this transmission line can be decomposed into two basic signals known as common mode (where its voltage is defined between the ground plane and each strip) and differential mode (where its voltage is defined between the two strips). This decomposition is often found in electromagnetic compatibility because the different techniques of filtering interferences depend on their main mode of propagation. The study carried out in this thesis is focused on the analysis from a multimodal point of view of different transitions that signals encounter during their propagation in a coupled microstrip transmission line. As a result of this analysis, a number of circuit models for different transitions have been obtained and experimentally validated. These models have been used to successfully study signal integrity problems found in EMC and they have been presented in national and international symposiums.

Una línia de transmissió three-line-microstrip consisteix en tres pistes paral·leles practicades sobre la cara d'un dielèctric amb un pla de massa inferior. La propagació en aquesta línia es pot descriure en termes de tres modes fonamentals anomenats ee, oo i oe. Tot i que aquests modes són ortogonals interaccionen entre sí a qualsevol transició, discontinuïtat o asimetria. En el pla d'una transició o asimetria es genera un intercanvi d'energia o conversió modal en el que prenen part tots els modes.En aquest treball s'analitza la conversió modal que s'origina en un conjunt de transicions i asimetries construïdes sobre línies three-line-microstrip. L'estudi es realitza aplicant la tècnica de l'anàlisi multimodal. L'ús d'aquesta tècnica permet la deducció d'una sèrie de models multimodals (un per a cada transició) que proporcionen una anàlisi simple, rigorosa i quantitativa d'aquest fenomen.La validesa d'aquest estudi es verifica de manera experimental. Els bons resultats obtinguts demostren que els models multimodals proposats prediuen de manera precisa el comportament de les transicions. Aquest fet permet el seu ús per analitzar circuits o estructures constituïts per trams de tres pistes acoblades. En el cas d'aquesta tesi, han estat aplicats als camps de l'EMC i de les microones. Pel que fa a l'EMC, s'ha realitzat un estudi de l'acoblament i la integritat del senyal en configuracions de PCB amb trams de tres pistes acoblades. Aquest estudi ha permès identificar les transicions i asimetries en aquests circuits com a possibles fonts d'interferència i de degradació dels senyals ja que la conversió modal es pot interpretar com a un procés d'interferència que involucra tots els senyals presents. Pel que fa a les microones, s'ha realitzat una anàlisi multimodal de filtres spurline. Aquesta anàlisi ha permès desenvolupar dues noves estructures, la principal característica de les quals és la seva compacitat que, a diferència d'altres estructures similars, s'aconsegueix permetent la presència d'un nou mode en el procés de ressonància. L'ús dels models multimodals per a l'anàlisi d'aquestes estructures ha permès una interpretació clara i senzilla del seu funcionament així com el desenvolupament d'una sèrie de regles de disseny que permeten un ajust fàcil i ràpid de certs paràmetres dels filtres com ara la freqüència central i l'ample de banda. / Una línea de transmisión three-line-microstrip consiste en tres pistas paralelas practicadas sobre la cara de un dieléctrico con un plano de masa inferior. La propagación en esta línea se puede describir en términos de tres modos fundamentales llamados ee, oo i oe. Aunque estos modos son ortogonales interaccionan entre se en cualquier transición, discontinuidad o asimetría. En el plano de una transición o asimetría se genera un intercambio de energía o conversión modal en el que toman parte todos los modos.En este trabajo se analiza la conversión modal que se origina en un conjunto de transiciones i asimetrías construidas sobre líneas three-line-microstrip. El estudio se realiza aplicando la técnica del análisis multimodal. El uso de esta técnica permite la deducción de una serie de modelos multimodales (un per a cada transición) que proporcionan un análisis simple, riguroso i cuantitativo de este fenómeno.La validez de este estudio se verifica de manera experimental. Los buenos resultados obtenidos demuestran que los modelos multimodales propuestos predicen de manera precisa el comportamiento de las transiciones. Este hecho permite su uso para analizar circuitos o estructuras constituidos por tramos de tres pistas acopladas. En esta tesis doctoral, han sido aplicados a los campos de la EMC i de las microondas. En el primero de ellos, se ha realizado un estudio del acoplamiento y la integridad de la señal en configuraciones de PCB con tramos de tres pistas acopladas. Este estudio ha permitido identificar las transiciones y asimetrías en estos circuitos como posibles fuentes de interferencia y de degradación de las señales ya que la conversión modal se puede interpretar como a un proceso de interferencia que involucra todas las señales presentes. En el campo de las microondas, se ha realizado un análisis multimodal de filtros spurline. Este análisis ha permitido desarrollar dos nuevas estructuras, cuya principal característica es su compacidad que, a diferencia de otras estructuras similares, se consigue permitiendo la presencia de un nuevo modo en el proceso de resonancia. El uso de los modelos multimodales para el análisis de estas estructuras ha permitido una interpretación clara i sencilla del su funcionamiento así como el desarrollo de una serie de reglas de diseño que permiten un ajuste fácil i rápido de ciertos parámetros de los filtros como por ejemplo la frecuencia central y el ancho de banda. / A three-line-microstrip transmission line consists of three parallel coupled strips printed on a grounded dielectric substrate. The propagation in this line can be described in terms of three fundamental modes, namely the ee, oo and oe modes. These modes are orthogonal and propagate independently unless a transition or asymmetry is present in the line. Any transition or asymmetry will generate an energy exchange or modal interaction among all the propagating modes. In this work, the modal interaction of a set of transitions and asymmetries in three-line-microstrip transmission lines is analyzed. The study is carried out by using the multimodal analysis. By means of this technique a set of multimodal circuit models (one for each transition) is derived. These models provide a simple and a quantitative interpretation of the modal interaction.The proposed multimodal analysis is experimentally validated. The obtained results show that the derived multimodal models accurately predict the behavior of the transitions. Due to this fact, they can be used for the analysis of circuits and structures composed of three-coupled-strip sections. In this work, the models have been applied to both the EMC and microwave fields. In the former, they have been employed to study the cross-talk and signal-integrity problems in PCB configurations involving tree-coupled-trace sections. The performed analysis has shown that transitions and asymmetries in these circuits must be considered as a source of interference and signal degradation since the modal interaction can be interpreted as an interference process that involves all the present signals. In the latter, a multimodal analysis of spurline filters has been performed. This study has allowed the derivation of two new filter structures whose main feature is their compactness, which, in contrast to other analogous filters, is achieved by allowing the presence of an additional mode in the resonance process. The use of the multimodal models for the analysis of these structures has permitted both a simple interpretation of the filter operation and the derivation of a set of design rules which allows a rapid fine tuning of some filter parameters such as the center frequency and the bandwidth.

In recent years, the wireless industry has witnessed tremendous development for the defense and commercial segments. The explosive growth in the modern radio frequency and microwave systems leads to an increased interest in the research of miniaturized microwave circuits with superior performance. Broadband components, in particular band pass filters (BPFs) and couplers are some of the widely used components in the modern communication systems, software defined radios, cognitive radios, imaging systems and positioning radars. In order to meet these requirements, the use of innovative geometries, a thorough understanding of their behavior by appropriate analytical techniques and the use of appropriate fabrication approaches are essential. This thesis is an effort in this direction. In this thesis work, an aperture in the ground plane is used to achieve the tight coupling in the edge and broadside-coupled coupled lines which may be otherwise difficult due to the fabrication limitations. Since microstrip lines with an aperture in the ground plane are found to be very useful in various MIC and MMIC components, closed form analytical expressions developed here will be useful for their initial synthesis. The performances of components using these are enhanced using open/short circuited resonators, spurlines and stubs. A quasi-static approach has been investigated to obtain simple closed form expressions for a microstrip line with a rectangular aperture in the ground plane. The effect of a rectangular aperture in the ground plane has been incorporated in the commonly used expressions of a regular microstrip line by introducing the concept of an equivalent effective height. The expressions for the effective height microstrip geometries with defected ground are obtained and this has been further extended to various possibilities of two-conductor and three-conductor coupled lines. Analysis of the filters and the couplers are mainly based on the even and odd mode propagation characteristics of coupled lines. This approach is extended in this thesis for three conductor coupled lines. Novel broadband BPFs and couplers and dual band pass filters employing various coupled line configurations and defected ground have been developed in this research work. Most of these components have been implemented on a regular microwave laminate or LTCC medium (planar or multi-layer) and tested for the required RF performances. The experimental results were compared against the analytically computed results based on the circuit models and the full wave simulations using electromagnetic (EM) simulations for the validation. The results are in good agreement. With practical requirements of the organization in mind, additional design elements such as open circuit stubs have been incorporated in some of these designs to achieve the desired performance. It is expected that the wideband filter (3.0GHz to 3.8GHz) and the broadband coupler (4GHz to 6GHz) developed in this thesis work would be deployed in systems developed at the Central Research Laboratory, Bharat Electronics Limited, Bangalore, India. In summary, the present doctoral work strives to (i) establish a simplified analysis method for the microstrip lines and coupled microstrip lines with a rectangular aperture in the ground plane, (ii) extend the even and odd mode analysis of the coupled lines for several new coupled line configurations, (iii) design novel broadband microwave filters, dual band filter and couplers using both these, (iv) fabricate these devices using the planar technologies including LTCC, and (v) validate the analysis and design with important practical applications.