Design of a 2 × 3 Microstrip Patch Phased Array Antenna for GNSS Augmentation

An array antenna has been proven to be more beneficial than a single element antenna as it augments the directivity as well as the control over radiation pattern. Not only that, it enables beam steering capability which is accomplished by establishing a phase difference relation among the antennas. As beam scanning is extensively used in radar, GNSS and GNSS augmentation technology, an array antenna with good scanning angle is always preferable. In this paper, a 2x3 phased array antenna is designed and analyzed using rectangular microstrip patch antenna on FR-4 dielectric substrate with an aim of accomplishing beam scanning. The antenna resonates at 1.278 GHz frequency which is the center frequency of Galileo E6 signal band (1.26-1.30 GHz) with a good VSWR value of 1.253. Rectangular slot is etched on each antenna in order to gain a better performance and each antenna is parted by equal distance. The overall dimension of the array has been optimized and a total scanning angle of 49° (-25° to +24) has been achieved considering a particular value of directivity. CST Microwave Studio has been exploited to design, examine and observe the crucial antenna parameters such as S parameters, VSWR, radiation pattern, beam scanning etc.