Antenna pattern measurement techniques for infinite ground plane simulation

An antenna pattern measurement technique for eliminating the effects of a finite ground plane, which is not limited by the bandwidth of the antenna, is presented. This technique consists of the measurement of the edge diffracted fields and their subsequent subtraction from the original pattern. Comparisons are made between theory, obtained assuming an infinite ground plane, and experiment for microstrip patch and monopole antennas mounted on a circular ground plane. The subtraction technique is shown to effectively eliminate the scattered field interference in the antenna radiation pattern by subtracting the backside scattered field contributions from the frontside of the pattern. Subtraction works for both narrow and wideband antennas, overcoming the limitations of time gating.>