An Autonomous Reconfigurable Antenna

Abstract

Today’s wireless communications involve more antenna capabilities while occupying the same amount of space. Antennas are able to operate at multiple frequencies [1]-[2], change polarizations [6], have selectable radiation patterns [1] and are becoming smaller. Likewise, antennas are serving multiple applications. However, many reconfigurable antennas use a separate power source to operate or use software defined radios. In certain instances this can be a limiting factor. To address this limit a novel autonomously reconfigurable antenna is presented in this thesis which allows for simple use at multiple frequencies [21]. This design uses power harvesting circuitry in combination with a reconfigurable antenna to demonstrate the ability to transmit at different frequencies, without the use of a separate power source. Furthermore this thesis presents a prototype for an autonomous reconfigurable antenna that operates at 1.25 GHz and 1.6 GHz.