Dielectric Resonator Antenna Array With Extended Beam-Scanning Range Using Dielectric Superstrate

An E-plane cylindrical dielectric resonator antenna (DRA) array with a dielectric superstrate is investigated for wide-angle scanning applications. Each slot-coupled DRA element operates at its fundamental HEM 11δ mode. The dielectric superstrate is loaded above the DRA array. By adjusting its dimension and position properly, the beamwidth of the center active element pattern is significantly broadened. Meanwhile, the mutual coupling effect among various elements is effectively reduced. Both the wide-beam element pattern and reduced mutual coupling level contribute to the improvement of the array beam-steering capability. Finally, our proposed E-plane DRA array has a wide range of ±80° with a scan loss of 3 dB.