Wideband VHF/UHF Wing Conformal Vertical Polarized Omnidirectional Antenna

This letter proposes a novel wideband wing conformal vertical polarized omnidirectional antenna for the very high frequency/ultrahigh frequency band. The antenna adopts symmetrical radiation and feed structures to obtain quasi-omnidirectional radiation. To be conformal with the ultrathin body of the wing, this construction is realized using double-layer flexible metal films that cover the surface of the wing. Moreover, there are several symmetric grooves on the upper metal film that are beneficial to improve the efficiency of radiation. The upper and lower metal films are connected by two shorting plates with same exponential gradual outline for vertical polarization and wideband potential. The ultrawide operating band can be realized by loading resistors and inductors. A conformal prototype of the antenna was fabricated and validated. The wing thickness determines the profile, which is only 0.013 λ_L, where λ_L is the wavelength at the lowest operating frequency. Its acquired bandwidth ranges from 100 to 600 MHz; high radiation efficiency and vertically polarized quasi-omnidirectional characters are also obtained in this band.