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fully edited. Content may change prior to final publication. Citation information: DOI 10.1109/TAP.2016.2536198, IEEE
Transactions on Antennas and Propagation
IEEE
IEEE TRANSACTIONS
TRANSACTIONS ON
Compact Linearly and Circularly Polarized
Unidirectional Dielectric Resonator Antennas
Lei Guo and Kwok Wa Leung, Fellow, IEEE
AbstractThe linearly polarized (LP) and circularly polarized
(CP) unidirectional dielectric resonator (DR) antennas (DRAs)
with compact ground planes are investigated. Both designs make
use of the broadside DR mode to obtain the required
equivalent magnetic dipoles. The required electric dipoles are
provided by the currents on the small ground planes. To
demonstrate the idea, both LP and CP unidirectional DRAs
operating at 2.4 GHz were designed, fabricated, and tested.
Reasonable agreement between the measured and simulated
results is observed. It was found that the front to back ratio
(FTBR) of the LP design is more than 15 dB over the frequency
range 2.302.55 GHz (10.1% bandwidth). For the CP design, the
FTBR is over 15 dB across the frequency range 2.402.55 GHz
(6.1% bandwidth).
Index TermsDielectric resonator antenna,
polarization, unidirectional.
I. INTRODUCTION
T HE complementary antenna is able to reduce back radiation.
It was first proposed for a parabolic dish excited by two
complementary sources [1]. Since then, complementary
designs were developed extensively, including those radiating
in the lateral direction [24] and boresight direction [517]. To
obtain broadside unidirectional radiation, Luk and Wong
proposed the magneto-electric dipole in [5]. Based on this idea,
a number of designs with different antenna features have been
developed, such as diversity [69], wide impedance bandwidth
[1014], low profile [15], [16], and circular polarization [17].
The unidirectional antennas as mentioned above require
either a long waveguide [1], reflector [9], [13], [15], back
cavity [2], [3], [7], [14], or large ground plane [46], [8
12],[1417], leading to a considerable antenna size. For modern
wireless systems, compact antennas are generally preferable to
large antennas. Very recently, a compact unidirectional
dielectric resonator (DR) antenna (DRA) that radiates laterally
has been designed using the complementary antenna concept
[18], with its ground plane size being almost as small as the
footprint of the DRA.
Over the last three decades, the DRA [19] has been studied
extensively because of its attractive merits such as its
The work was supported by a GRF grant from the Research Grants Council
of Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No. CityU
117213).
L. Guo and K. W. Leung are with the State Key Laboratory of Millimeter
Waves and Department of Electronic Engineering, City University of Hong
Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China. (email:leiguo4-c@my.cityu.edu.hk;
eekleung@cityu.edu.hk).
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1
ON ANTENNAS
ANTENNAS AND
AND PROPAGATION,
PROPAGATION, VOL.
VOL. 64,
64, NO.
NO. 6,
6, JUNE
JUNE 2015
2016
compactness, low cost, ease of excitation, and high efficiency.
Usually, the ground plane of a broadside DRA is much larger than
the footprint of the DR to suppress back radiation. A compact
broadside unidirectional DRA with a small ground plane has
been recently studied [20], in which the sidewalls and two faces
of the feeding substrate are metalized (except for the feeding
slot) to form a back cavity to reduce back radiation. However,
there is no substrate space for circuit integration due to the
metallization.
In this paper, the compact broadside unidirectional DRA is
designed using the idea of complementary antenna. It makes
use of a pair of orthogonal electric and (equivalent) magnetic
dipoles, which are realized by using the electric current on the
circular ground plane and the DR HEM11 mode, respectively.
Combining the dipoles properly can enhance the boresight
radiation and suppress unwanted back radiation, giving a good
broadside unidirectional antenna.
Circularly polarized (CP) antennas are often used to reduce
multipath interferences and relax the alignment between the
transmitting and receiving antennas. Broadside CP DRAs can
be excited by annular slots [21]. In [21], backing cavities have
been added to obtain unidirectional radiation, at the expense of
increasing the complexity and volume of the structure. In this
paper, a compact broadside CP unidirectional DRA that has a
front to back ratio (FTBR) of more than 15dB is also
investigated. A -slot, which combines a rectangular slot and
x
an annular slot, is used to excite the degenerate HEM11 and
y
HEM11 modes of the DR. These DR modes provide two
orthogonal magnetic dipoles, which combine with two
equivalent electric dipoles of the ground plane to obtain CP
unidirectional radiation.
For demonstration, both the linearly polarized (LP) and CP
unidirectional DRAs were designed at 2.4 GHz for WLAN
applications. In each case, a prototype was designed and
fabricated, and its ground plane is only slightly larger than the
footprint of the DR. Reasonable agreement between the
measured and simulated results was obtained. In the LP design,
the measured FTBR is at least 15dB across the frequency range
2.302.55 GHz (10.1% bandwidth), with the peak FTBR being
as high as 33 dB at 2.43 GHz. For the CP design, both the
measured and simulated FTBRs are higher than 15dB across
the frequency range 2.402.55 GHz (6.1% bandwidth).
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Transactions on Antennas and Propagation
II. COMPACT LP UNIDIRECTIONAL DRA
A. Configuration
Figure 1 shows the configuration of the proposed compact
unidirectional DRA. The solid cylindrical DR has a radius of a
= 23 mm, height of H = 15 mm, and dielectric constant of r =
10. It is placed on a compact ground plane with a side length of
Ga = 50 mm (0.4 0), where 0 is the wavelength in air at
2.4GHz. To mount the connector, the side length Ga is only
4mm longer than the DR diameter. A rectangular slot, etched at
the center of the ground plane, excites the DRA in its HEM 11
mode. The slot is fed by a microstrip line on the other side of
the substrate, which has a dielectric constant of rs = 2.94 and
thickness of hs = 3.17 mm. The thick substrate is used to
increase the FTBR in the required frequency band. Using
ANSYS HFSS, the slot and microstrip line were optimized as L
= 31 mm, W = 2 mm, Ls = 34 mm, and Wf = 8 mm.
(a)
(b)
Fig. 1. Configuration of proposed compact LP unidirectional DRA: H = 15 mm,
a = 23 mm, r = 10, Ga = 50 mm, L = 31 mm, W = 2 mm, Ls = 34 mm, Wf = 8 mm,
rs = 2.94, and hs = 3.17 mm. (a) Side view. (b) Top view.
B. Parametric Studies and Operating Principle
A parametric study was carried out to analyze the resonant
mode of the unidirectional DRA. To begin, the slot length L
increased from 30 mm to 32 mm with a step of 1 mm. It was
found from the simulated reflection coefficients that the
resonant frequency only slightly changes with L. It is because
the operating mode is due to the DRA but not the slot. In fact,
the slot is off resonance over the given frequency range. Next,
the effect of the DRA height H on the reflection coefficient was
studied. It was seen from the simulated results that changing H
causes the resonant frequency to shift significantly. A similar
result was also observed when the DRA radius a was varied.
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2
The results are very reasonable because the DR dimensions
directly affect its resonant frequency. The results, however, are
not included here for brevity. It can be inferred found from the
parametric study that the resonant mode is due to the DR. To
identify the DR mode, the E- and H-fields inside the DRA were
simulated at 2.43 GHz. It was observed that the near-field
patterns agree well with those of the DR HEM11 mode [22],
[23]. To further verify that it is the DR HEM11 mode, the
ground plane size Ga increased from 50 mm to 180 mm (1.44 0
at 2.4 GHz). In this case, the resonance frequency was observed
to decrease from 2.43 GHz to 2.17 GHz, which is very close to
the estimated value of 2.11 GHz obtained using an
HEM11-mode formula [24]. The discrepancy between the
simulated and estimated frequencies is mainly due to the finite
ground plane effect, as explained in [25]. Thus, an x-directed
equivalent magnetic current can be obtained from the DR
HEM11 mode for the unidirectional design.
Figure 2 shows the electric current distribution on the ground
plane at 2.43 GHz. With reference to the figure, the current
flows mainly towards the y direction, radiating like a y-directed
electric dipole. Table I explains that when the x-directed
magnetic dipole and y-directed electric dipole are combined
properly, boresight radiation can be reinforced whereas back
radiation can be counteracted. As a result, unidirectional
broadside radiation can be achieved.
Fig. 2. Simulated electric current on ground plane of compact LP unidirectional
DRA at 2.43GHz. The parameters are the same as Fig. 1.
TABLE I. RADIATION PATTERNS OF UNIDIRECTIONAL DRA
Current on
DR
ground Plane Superimposed
(x-directed
(y-directed radiation pattern
magnetic Dipole)
electric dipole)
xz-plane
(H-plane)
yz-plane
(E-plane)
C. Simulated and Measured Results
Based on the optimized design, a prototype shown in Fig. 3
was fabricated and measured using an Agilent network
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TRANSACTIONS ANTENNAS AND
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analyzer 8753 and a Satimo StarLab system. In the observed from the figure, the two patterns are very close to each
measurements, an RF choke similar to the previous one in [25], other. The directivities of the obliquity factor and our design are
was used to inhibit the return current from flowing on the outer 4.77dB and 5.42 dB, respectively. This difference is due to the
conductor of the coaxial cable. fact that the equivalent dipoles of the proposed antenna are not
ideal.
0
o
0 o
30 o 30 o 30 o 30 o
Co-pol
o o
60 o 60 60 60 o

90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0

90 o 90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0
90 o
dB dB
(a) (b)
Fig. 3. Photos of the antenna prototype. (a) Perspective view showing DRA and 120 o 120 o
120 o 120 o
ground plane with rectangular slot. (b) Bottom view showing microstrip
feedline on the other side of substrate. 150 o 150 o X-pol 150 o 150 o
180 o 180 o
(-x) (+x) (-y) (+y)
Figure 4 shows the measured and simulated reflection
coefficients of the DRA. With reference to the figure, both the xz-plane (H-plane) yz-plane (E-plane)
measured and simulated resonant frequencies are around 2.41 Simulation 2.43 GHz
GHz. The measured impedance bandwidth (|S11| 10 dB) is Measurement 2.43 GHz
14.5% (2.242.59 GHz), which agrees reasonably with the Fig. 5. Measured and simulated radiation patterns of compact LP unidirectional
simulated result of 13.4% (2.23 2.55 GHz). The wider DRA at 2.43GHz. The parameters are the same as Fig. 1.
measured impedance bandwidth can be expected because of
inevitable loss due to experimental imperfections. 0
o
0
o

30 o 30 o Co-pol 30 o 30 o

Reflection Coefficient (dB) o o

60 o 60 60 60 o
0

90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0

90 o 90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0
90 o
dB dB

120 o 120 o 120 o 120 o

-10

150 o 150 o X-pol 150 o 150 o

-20
-30
2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5
Frequency (GHz)
Fig. 4. Measured and simulated reflection coefficients of compact LP
unidirectional DRA. The parameters are the same as Fig.1.
Figure 5 shows the simulated and measured radiation
patterns, with reasonable agreement between them. High
FTBRs of 29.2 dB and 33.0 dB are obtained from the
simulation and measurement, respectively. The simulated 3-dB
beamwidths in the xz- and yz-planes are 97 and 120,
respectively, whereas their measured counterparts are 109and
126respectively. Both the measured and simulated FTBRs are
over 15 dB across the frequency range 2.302.55 GHz (10.1%).
In this paper, the usable frequency band is defined as the
overlapping frequency range of FTBR>15dB and |S11| 10 dB.
Based on this definition, the usable bandwidth of the
unidirectional DRA is 10.1%.
Figure 6(a) compares the E-field patterns of the proposed
antenna at 2.43GHz with that of the obliquity factor (1+cos ).
The yz-plane is chosen for comparison because the antenna
structure is symmetric with respect to the y axis. As can be
180 o 180 o
(-y) (+y)
E-field pattern of
Simulation xz-plane
obliquity factor
yz-plane
Measurement E-field pattern at
2.43 GHz
(a) (b)
2.6 2.7 Fig. 6. (a) Comparison of simulated yz-plane E-field pattern at 2.43 GHz with
the obliquity factor (1+cos). (b) Simulated radiation patterns of reference
antenna at 2.43 GHz on large ground plane with area of 125 125mm2 (0 0):
H = 19.5 mm and a = 12.7 mm.
To compare the unidirectionality of the proposed DRA with
that of a conventional DRA, a conventional slot-fed cylindrical
DRA designed at 2.4 GHz is used as a reference antenna. The
reference antenna is also excited in its HEM11 mode, with a
large ground plane area of 125125mm2 (0 0 at 2.4 GHz). It
has a radius of a = 19.5 mm and height of H = 12.7 mm. Its H/a
ratio is the same as that of the proposed DRA. Figure 6(b)
shows the radiation patterns of the reference antenna at 2.43
GHz. The figure shows that the reference antenna has a much
larger back lobe. Table II summarizes the FTBRs, ground plane
areas, and DRA volumes of the proposed and reference
antennas. With reference to the table, the FTBR of our
proposed antenna (29.2 dB) is desirably much higher than that
of the reference antenna (13.8 dB), although the ground plane
area of our design is only 16% of that of the reference antenna.
The cost of the proposed antenna is that it has a larger antenna
volume, as shown in the table.

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This article has been accepted for publication in a future issue of this journal, but has not been fully edited. Content may change prior to final publication. Citation information: DOI 10.1109/TAP.2016.2536198, IEEE
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4

It is worth mentioning that although the FTBR of the to optimize the CP performance. The same ground plane size is
proposed LP design can be enhanced by increasing the ground used, i.e., the side length is given by Ga = 50 mm (0.4 0 at 2.4
plane size, the overlapping impedance and FTBR bandwidths GHz). To make the ground plane current more directional along
will undesirably decrease whereas the antenna size will the x- and y-directions, the copper of the four ground plane
increase. corners is removed, as shown in Fig. 8b. The size of each corner
is 16mm (a1) 15mm (a2). A -shaped slot fabricated at the
TABLE II. COMPARISION OF REFERENCE DRA AND PROPOSED center of the ground plane is used to excite the CP DRA, with
UNIDIRECTIONAL DRA AT 2.43 GHZ parameters of L = 32 mm, W = 1.2 mm, Ra = 10.4 mm and W1 =
FTBR Ground Plane DRA volume
1.7 mm. The -shaped slot is used here instead of an annular
Category slot because it was found that the former can give a wider
(dB) dimension (cm3)
Reference DRA 13.8 0 0 15.2 15-dB FTBR bandwidth. The slot is fed by an L-shaped
Proposed DRA 29.2 0.400.40 24.9 microstrip line, which has parameters of Ls = 10 mm, Wf = 8
mm, Ls = 22 mm, Ls = 32 mm, and Wf = 14 mm.
The simulated and measured antenna gains of the LP
unidirectional DRA are shown in Fig. 7. Again, reasonable
agreement between the two results is observed. With reference
to the figure, the measured gain is higher than 4.85 dBi across
the usable frequency band (2.302.55 GHz), with the maximum
gain given by 5.09 dBi at 2.44 GHz. The simulated gain is
higher than 4.97 dBi across the usable band with its peak value
given by 5.31 dBi at 2.43 GHz. It can be expected that the
measured gain is lower than the simulated result because of the
dielectric and metallic loss. The total antenna efficiency
(a)
measured using the Satimo StarLab system is also shown in
Fig.7. It has included impedance mismatch. As can be observed
from the figure, the efficiency varies between 90.8% and 93.6%
across the usable band. From the results of Fig. 7, it can be seen
that both the antenna gain and efficiency of the proposed LP
unidirectional design are comparable to those of a conventional
DRA.
Antenna Gain (dBi) Antenna Efficiency
6 1

5
(b)

0.9

3
Simulated antenna gain

Measured antenna gain

2
Measured antenna efficiency

1 0.8
2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7
Frequency (GHz)
Fig. 7. Measured and simulated antenna gains and measured antenna efficiency (c)
of compact LP unidirectional DRA. The parameters are the same as Fig. 1. Fig. 8. Configuration of compact CP unidirectional DRA: H = 13.2 mm, a = 23
mm, r = 10, L = 32 mm, W = 1.2 mm, Ra = 10.4 mm, W1 = 1.7 mm, Ls = 10 mm,
Wf = 8 mm, Ls = 22 mm, Ls = 32 mm, Wf = 14 mm, Ga = 50 mm, a1 =16mm,
and a2 = 15 mm. (a) Side view. (b) Top view of substrate showing the ground
III. COMPACT CP UNIDIRECTIONAL DRA plane. (c) Bottom view of substrate showing the microstrip feedline.
The CP cylindrical unidirectional DRA is investigated in this
section. Its design is based on the LP unidirectional DRA, with B. Theory of Antenna Design
the same DR material and substrate.
To obtain CP unidirectional radiation, two LP unidirectional
A. Configuration fields in space and phase quadrature are needed. Figure 9 shows
The configuration of the CP unidirectional antenna is shown two sets of electric () and magnetic ( ) currents, with the
in Fig. 8. The DR radius (a = 23 mm) of the LP design is used brackets showing the phases of the currents. It is worth
again, but the DR height decreases from H = 15 mm to 13.2 mm

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mentioning that for each current set, the electric and magnetic
currents need to have a phase difference of 180o in order to
radiate unidirectional fields [25]. Also, the currents in Fig. 9(a)
and 9(b) are in space and phase quadrature and so are their
radiated LP fields. By combining these two quadrature LP
fields, unidirectional CP fields can be obtained. Equivalently,
the currents in Fig. 9 can be rearranged to obtain a set of
quadrature magnetic currents and a set of quadrature electric
currents, as shown in Fig. 10.
(a) (b)
Fig. 11. Simulated surface current distribution on the solid ground plane. (a)
y-directed surface current at time t = 0. (b) x-directed surface current at t = T/4,
where T is the period of time.

(a) (b)
Fig. 9. Two sets of electric and magnetic currents, with the brackets showing
the phases of the currents. (a) A set of electric and magnetic currents generating
one set of LP unidirectional field. (b) Second set of electric and magnetic
currents generating another set of LP unidirectional field. The two sets of fields (a) (b)
are in space and phase quadrature. Fig. 12. Simulated surface current distribution on the modified ground plane. (a)
y-directed surface current at time t = 0. (b) x-directed surface current at t = T/4,
where T is the period of time.

C. Simulated and Measured Results

A prototype of the proposed CP DRA was fabricated and
measured. Figure 13 shows the photos of the prototype. Again,
an RF choke is used in the measurement to prevent the return
current from flowing on the outer conductor of the cable. Figure
(a) (b) 14 shows the measured and simulated reflection coefficients,
Fig. 10. Quadrature electric and magnetic currents rearranged from the currents which are in reasonable agreement. As can be found from the
in Fig. 9. (a) Quadrature electric currents. (b) Quadrature magnetic currents. figure, the measured and simulated impedance bandwidths are
19.2% (2.262.74 GHz) and 15.4% (2.272.65 GHz),
The required quadrature electric currents in Fig. 10(a) are
respectively. It can be observed from the figure that the
provided by the ground plane. Figures 11 and 12 show the
measured result has a slightly higher frequency than the
current distributions of the solid ground plane (no copper
simulated result, which should be mainly caused by the air gap
removed) and modified ground plane, respectively. The
between the DRA and ground plane [26]. The measured
currents are plotted at t = 0 and T/4, where T is the period of
impedance bandwidth is wider than the simulated counterpart
time. In other words, the two current plots are in phase
due to the loss of the DR, substrate, and RF choke.
quadrature. As compared with the currents of the solid ground
plane case (Fig. 11), those of the modified ground plane are
relatively more directional along the y- and x-axes at t = 0 (Fig.
12(a)) and T/4 (Fig. 12(b)), respectively. This explains why
better antenna performance can be obtained by using the
modified ground plane. With reference to Fig. 12(a), the
radiation is mainly due to the y-directed current because the
currents along the x-axes are opposite to each other. In Fig. (a) (b)
Fig. 13. Photos of compact CP unidirectional DRA prototype. (a) Perspective
12(b), the x-directed current is dominant especially around the view showing DRA and ground plane. (b) Bottom view showing microstrip
central part of the -slot. For the required quadrature magnetic feedline on the other side of the substrate.
currents in Fig. 10(b), they can be easily obtained by exciting
the CP DRA in its HEM11 mode. It is worth mentioning that
rounded inner corners were also tried for the modified ground
plane and similar current plots as in Fig. 12 were observed.

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6

0
o
Reflection Coefficient (dB) 0 o
30 o 30 o 30 o 30 o
0 RHCP
o o
60 o 60 60 60 o

-5
90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0
90 o 90 o -40 -30 -20 -10 0
90 o
dB dB
-10
o
120 o 120 120 o 120 o

150 o 150 o
LHCP 150 o 150 o
-15
180 o 180 o
(-x) (+x) (-y) (+y)
-20 Simulation xz-plane yz-plane
Measurement
Simulation 2.48 GHz
Measurement 2.48 GHz
-25
2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7
Frequency (GHz) (a) (b)
Fig. 16. Measured and simulated radiation patterns of the compact CP
Fig. 14. Measured and simulated reflection coefficients of compact CP unidirectional DRA at 2.48 GHz. The parameters are the same as Fig. 8. (a)
unidirectional DRA. The parameters are the same as Fig. 8. Elevation (x-z) plane. (b) Elevation (y-z) plane.

Figure 15 compares the measured and simulated ARs of the
antenna in the boresight direction ( = 0), with reasonable
agreement. The best measured and simulated ARs are 0.18 dB
and 0.54 dB at 2.48 GHz and 2.47 GHz, respectively. Both the
measured and simulated 3-dB AR bandwidths are 6.5% (2.4
2.56 GHz), which is entirely within the impedance bandwidth.
The AR bandwidth is sufficient for 2.4-GHz WLAN band.
Axial Ratio (dB)
6
Figure 17 shows the measured and simulated antenna gains
of the CP DRA. Across the usable frequency band (2.402.55
GHz), the measured maximum and minimum gains are 4.28
dBic and 4.05 dBic respectively, reasonably agreeing with the
corresponding simulated results of 4.73 dBic and 4.41 dBic. It
can be expected that the measured antenna gain is lower than
the simulated result because of experimental imperfections.
The measured total antenna efficiency is also included in Fig.17.
With reference to the figure, the efficiency varies between
94.4% and 93.3% across the usable frequency band, as similar
to that of the LP design.
Antenna Gain (dBic) Antenna Efficiency
5 1

3
4

Simulation 3
Measurement
0.9

2
0 Simulated antenna gain
2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7
Frequency (GHz) Measured antenna gain
1
Measured antenna efficiency
Fig. 15. Measured and simulated ARs of compact CP unidirectional DRA. The
parameters are the same as Fig. 8. 0 0.8
2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7
Figure 16 shows the simulated and measured radiation Frequency (GHz)
patterns at 2.48 GHz. As can be observed from the figure, Fig. 17. Measured and simulated antenna gains and measured antenna
efficiency of compact CP unidirectional DRA. The parameters are the same as
broadside unidirectional radiation patterns are obtained, as Fig. 8.
expected. The measured 3-dB beamwidths in the xz- and
yz-planes are 120 and 140 respectively, which agree
reasonably well with the corresponding simulated values of 120 IV. CONCLUSION
and 130. At 2.48 GHz, the measured and simulated FTBRs are The LP and CP broadside unidirectional cylindrical DRAs
15.5 dB and 16.7 dB, respectively. It was found that both the with compact ground planes have been investigated. Small
measured and simulated 15-dB FTBR bandwidths are given by ground planes that are only slightly larger than the DR footprint
6.1% (2.402.55 GHz) with a center frequency of 2.48 GHz. are used for both designs. As a result, the designs are very
The FTBR bandwidth limits the overall usable antenna compact. In each case, the DRA is excited in the HEM11 mode,
bandwidth to 6.1%. demonstrated at 2.4 GHz for WLAN applications.

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IEEETRANSACTIONS
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ONANTENNAS
ANTENNASAND
ANDPROPAGATION,
PROPAGATION,VOL.
The LP DRA is fed by a rectangular slot. To obtain broadside
unidirectional radiation patterns, the required equivalent
x-directed magnetic dipole and y-directed electric dipole have
been obtained by making use of the DR HEM11 mode and
ground plane current, respectively. Basically, the DRA
dimensions should be adjusted first to obtain the desired
operating frequency, followed by varying the slot and stub
lengths to match the impedance and obtain a good FTBR.
A prototype was fabricated and measured. It has been found
that the measured impedance and FTBR bandwidths are 14.5%
and 10.1%, respectively, giving a usable frequency band of
10.1% (2.302.55 GHz). It has also been found that the
measured FTBR, maximum gain, and maximum antenna
efficiency are 33 dB (at 2.43GHz), 5.09 dBi, and 93.6%,
respectively. The FTBR of the proposed unidirectional DRA
can be more than twice that of the conventional slot-coupled
DRA, with the ground plane size being only 16% of that of the
conventional design. The cost is to increase the DR size from
15.2 cm3 to 24.9 cm3 to maintain the same resonance frequency
for using a much smaller ground plane.
The CP unidirectional DRA has been obtained based on the
LP design, with the rectangular slot replaced with the -slot.
Two degenerate HEM11 and HEM11 modes of the DR have
been excited by the -slot to provide two quadrature equivalent
magnetic currents. The magnetic currents combine with the y-
and x-directed ground plane currents to generate CP
unidirectional fields. To strengthen the y- and x-directed ground
plane currents, copper has been removed from the four corners
of the ground plane. The CP antenna can be designed by first
tuning the -slot to obtain good match and AR. Next, a good
FTBR can be found by adjusting the size of the four ground
plane corners and fine-tuning the -slot. A prototype for the CP
design was also fabricated and measured. It has been found that
the measured overlapping bandwidth of the impedance, AR,
and FTBR is 6.1% (2.4-2.55 GHz). Across the overlapping
bandwidth, the measured maximum gain and efficiency are
given by 4.28 dBic and 94.4%, respectively.
Finally, it is worth mentioning that both the LP and CP
unidirectional designs deploy a simple cylindrical DR and
therefore the antennas can be realized very easily.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
The authors would like to thank the reviewers for their
valuable comments. They would also like to thank N. Yang and
X.Y. Sun for their valuable discussions. The photos of the
prototypes were taken by M. S. Leung.
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Lei Guo received the B.Eng. degree in
communication engineering from the Harbin Institute
of Technology, Harbin, China, in 2011. She is now
pursuing the Ph.D. degree in electronic Engineering
with the City University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong,
China. Her current research interests include
dielectric resonator antenna, antenna in package, and
energy harvesting.
This article has been accepted for publication in a future issue of this journal, but has not been fully edited. Content may change prior to final publication. Citation information: DOI 10.1109/TAP.2016.2536198, IEEE
Transactions on Antennas and Propagation
8

Kwok Wa Leung (S90M93SM02F11) was

born in Hong Kong. He received the B.Sc. degree in
Electronics and Ph.D. degree in electronic
engineering from the Chinese University of Hong
Kong, in 1990 and 1993, respectively.
In 1994, Professor Leung joined the Department of
Electronic Engineering at City University of Hong
Kong (CityU) and is currently a Professor. He is also
the founding Director of the Innovation Centre of the
Department. From Jan. to June, 2006, he was a
Visiting Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, The
Pennsylvania State University, USA.
Professor Leung was the Chairman of the IEEE AP/MTT Hong Kong Joint
Chapter for the years of 2006 and 2007. He was the Chairman of the Technical
Program Committee, 2008 Asia-Pacific Microwave Conference, Hong Kong,
the Co-Chair of the Technical Program Committee, 2006 IEEE TENCON,
Hong Kong, and the Finance Chair of PIERS 1997, Hong Kong. His research
interests include RFID tag antennas, dielectric resonator antennas, microstrip
antennas, wire antennas, guided wave theory, computational electromagnetics,
and mobile communications. Professor Leung was an Editor of HKIE
Transactions and a Guest Editor of IET Microwaves, Antennas and
Propagation. He was an Associate Editor for the IEEE Transactions on
Antennas and Propagation and received IEEE AP-S Transactions
Commendation Certificates twice in 2009 and 2010 for his exceptional
performance. He was also an Associate Editor for the IEEE Antennas and
Wireless Propagation Letters. Professor Leung was a Distinguished Lecturer of
the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society for 2012-2014. Currently,
Professor Leung is the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Transactions on Antennas
and Propagation and a member of the IEEE AP-S Distinguished Lecturer
Committee.
Professor Leung received the International Union of Radio Science (USRI)
Young Scientists Awards in Kyoto, Japan and St. Petersburg, Russia in 1993
and 1995, respectively. He received Departmental Outstanding Teacher
Awards in 2005, 2010 and 2011 and CityU Research Excellence Award 2013.
Professor Leung is a Fellow of IEEE.

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