DESIGN OF METAMATERIAL-BASED WIDEBAND PATCH ANTENNA FOR 5G NR, N46, AND N79 BAND APPLICATIONS

A low-profile, miniaturized, wideband, single-fed, driven, rectangular microstrip patch antenna loaded with a single-layered double negative (DNG) complementary metamaterial for 5G sub-6 GHz applications is designed. Based on the needs of the present and the future, the metamaterial is essential for improving the performance of the antenna. The proposed antenna has dimensions of 0.35λ × 0.35λ × 0.02λ mm<sup>3</sup> and is made of FR4 substrate material with a dielectric constant of 4.4. This design uses complementary metamaterial placed out periodically on the lower side of the ground with a rectangular slot and metamaterial on the patch to achieve wideband operation. The proposed antenna resonates at 5.06 GHz and covers a band from 4.65 GHz to 5.6 GHz with a return loss of -30 dB and VSWR < 2. It provides a 950 MHz wide bandwidth, a peak gain of 3.5 dBi, and a 94% radiation efficiency. A novel metamaterial improves not only bandwidth but also reduces the size of the antenna. It reduces its size by 86% compared to conventional antennas. In 5G applications, this antenna covers the n46 (5.150-5.925 GHz) and n79 (4.400-5 GHz) bands. It is suitable for WLAN, C-band, and radar system applications. This paper presents the analysis of the antenna together with the measured findings.