MATERIAL SELECTION FOR MICROSTRIP ANTENNA USING CRITIC-MIACRA INTEGRATION AS A PRACTICAL APPROACH

Selection of suitable material is a critical step in design of microstrip antenna. Dielectric constant, thermal expansion coefficient, conductivity, mechanical properties, weight are leading material properties to select the proper material. Besides these factors, environmental factors, cost and size are among prominent design criteria. In this study to analyze material selection situation for microstrip antenna manufacturing a multi criteria decision making (MCDM) structure is proposed. In this context, CRITIC-MAIRCA integration which are the one of the MCDM approaches are performed to determine the best material for microstrip antenna. Dielectric constant, loss tangent and thermal expansion coefficient criteria are considered to select the best among eighteen different materials. The impact of each criterion on selection process is computed via using CRITIC. To rank alternative considering the weights of criteria, MAIRCA was utilized. As a result, BaSrTi2O6 (bulk form) is determined as the best material for microstrip antenna manufacturing. This study provides an initial insight related to the suitable material in a practical manner.