A Transmission Line Method to Compute the Far-Field Radiation of Arbitrarily Directed Hertzian Dipoles in a Multilayer Dielectric Structure: Theory and Applications

A transmission line method is proposed to compute the far-field radiation patterns of arbitrarily directed Hertzian dipoles that are embedded in a multilayer dielectric structure. The evaluation of the field in the far-zone region is transformed into the evaluation of the field inside the multilayer structure by applying the reciprocity theorem. The horizontal field component inside the structure is derived by analyzing a transmission line circuit, and the vertical component is obtained from the horizontal component by separating the forward and backward waves. This method is implemented and verified by IE3D for the case of a three-layer structure excited by either electric Hertzian dipoles, magnetic Hertzian dipoles, or their combination. The radiation patterns of any antenna embedded in a multilayer dielectric structure can be computed with this method after replacing the physical antenna with a set of Hertzian dipoles. As examples, a quarter wavelength thin wire monopole antenna and a dielectric resonator antenna, both embedded in a multilayer structure, are investigated. Furthermore, the arrangement of the structure is optimized to maximize the antenna directivity. The results are also verified by the simulation of the entire structure with IE3D