A wideband 4-port MIMO antenna supporting sub-6 GHz spectrum for 5G mobile terminals

Abstract

Abstract In this work, a unique wideband multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna for fifth-generation (5G) applications is introduced. Each antenna element in the MIMO system is formed using a modified parasitic ring. To improve the performance of the antenna, a rectangular-shaped region is etched into the opposite side of each element in the ground plane. The proposed MIMO antenna is designed on a commercially available FR-4 substrate, having total dimensions of 100 × 60 × 0.8 mm3. Most interestingly, the antenna has a measured bandwidth from 2.60 to 5.97 GHz. This will effectively encompass the most predicted feasible bands for futuristic 5G communications, including 5G new radio frequency bands (N77/N78/N79) and long-term evolution (LTE) 46 band. The performance of a single antenna is evaluated in terms of S-parameters, gain, radiation patterns and efficiency. The performance of the MIMO system is also evaluated in terms of the envelope correlation coefficient (ECC) and diversity gain (DG). The designed antenna is fabricated, and the simulation results are verified practically. Good agreement is reached between simulation and measurement results. The proposed design is a good choice for 5G applications that require wideband capabilities.