Miniaturized HF Antennas

This project addresses the US military's need for compact high-frequency (HF) antennas by leveraging inkjet print (IJP) additive manufacturing (AM) techniques to create miniaturized conformal HF antennas. The HF antennas will be miniaturized using magneto-dielectric (MD) enhanced metamaterials (MM) which are integrated into a hierarchical multi-material antenna structure, ensuring low-profile, streamlined designs. A detailed design trade study will be conducted to refine the miniaturized, conformal HF antennas, with a focus on optimizing their electrical and structural performance for durability, lightweight construction, and straightforward deployment. The investigation will cover a range of design concepts, evaluating essential performance indicators such as gain, bandwidth, and efficiency. Following the fabrication of test structures, their actual performance will be benchmarked against simulations, using the findings to fine-tune a series of compact HF antenna designs. These designs are intended for modular payloads, ensuring compatibility with Navy rotary-wing aircraft, aiming to meet military specifications for advanced communication capabilities. The program will advance the technology sufficiently for functional HF antennas to be fabricated and demonstrated in Phase II.