Design and numerical characterization of a realistic plasma dipole

This work presents the numerical results for a plasma dipole antenna that exploits plasma technology to generate and receive electromagnetic fields. Two models have been considered, namely an ideal plasma dipole, and a realistic plasma dipole. The latter comprises part of the plasma generation equipment (e.g. metal terminations, inductors). The realistic plasma dipole was realized in practice and tested for the plasma density. Moreover, a preliminary test by means of a vector network analyzer with the plasma turned off was undertaken to verify the accuracy of the simulation models. Both the models can achieve good antenna performances. However, a downshift in the operational frequency can be observed when a more realistic design is considered. All the simulated results have been obtained through full-wave numerical simulations in CST Microwave Studio.