An Integral Equation Approach to the Analysis of Finite Microstrip Antennas: Volume/Surface Formulation

An E-field integral equation is developed for the analysis of finite printed circuit antennas with multiple dielectric regions. In this analysis, the ground plane is considered to be finite. The dielectric substrates may be either lossless or lossy, and may be inhomogeneous but must be finite. First, the equivalence principle is used to replace all conducting bodies by equivalent surface electric currents and all dielectrics by equivalent volume polarization currents. The respective boundary conditions on the dielectrics and the conductors are utilized to solve for the electric current on the entire structure. Finally, typical results are presented to illustrate the potential of this method.