Sparse Wire Grid C-Band Conical Horn Antenna

Nowadays, reducing the mass and size of antennas is important for many modern wireless applications. There are many ways to do this, such as sparse traditional antennas or the use of wire grids. The combination of sparse antennas and wire grids to create sparse wire grid structures has been the subject of research in recent years due to the increasing demands for compact modern devices. One approach based on this combination that has received considerable attention is the approach named optimal current grid approximation. In this paper, we have comprehensively analyzed the results of wire grid approximation of a conical horn antenna metal surface operating in the C-band. The results obtained for the wire grid model were compared with simulation and measurement results for two antenna models designed using 3D printing and metal and resin casting techniques. The comparison showed that the wire grid structure results were in a good agreement with those obtained numerically and experimentally for the metal cast model. The optimal current grid approximation approach was applied on the original wire grid structure to generate sparse wire grid structures. The characteristics of the generated sparse structures were compared with each other and with those of the original one. Comprehensive analyses were done to provide manufacturers with a clear understanding of the resulting sparse antennas performance to choose a suitable one for their demands. This investigation proved the effectiveness of using wire grid together with the optimal current grid approximation approach to approximate and generate sparse structures of conical horn antennas operating in C-band.