Low-profile VHF-UHF antennas using anisotropic/inhomogeneous MetaFerrites

This research is aimed at using MetaFerrite composites to design low profile, octave bandwidth with gain greater than 0 dBi VHF-UHF antennas for Army platforms where size and weight are critically important. The goals of this proposal are to design such an antenna 200-500 MHz band. In 2013, MetaMaterials Inc. researchers demonstrated that their proprietary anisotropic MetaFerrites could be used to demonstrate a light weight, linearly polarized antenna that had a 2 sq. ft. aperture, and a 1.5 depth with gain greater than 0 dBi over an octave. In Phase I of this program, MetaMaterials Inc. will use its improved anisotropic and inhomogeneous MetaFerrites to design an even thinner antenna with without decreasing gain or bandwidth. The effort in the Phase I Option will be focused on demonstrating the realizability and practicality of the MetaFerrites used in the design of the optimum antenna.