Frequency-reconfigurable antenna for broadband airborne applications

In this letter, we propose a broadband reconfigurable antenna for aircraft communication that covers the VHF/UHF/L-bands (30-300/300-400/960-1220 MHz). The proposed antenna structure is a modified biconical unipole antenna. The antenna is frequency-reconfigurable using a p-i-n diode switch. In the on state, the antenna operates as a V-type traveling antenna and covers 30-300 and 960-1150 MHz. In the off state, the antenna operates as a unipole antenna and covers 300-400 and 1150-1220 MHz. The maximum power dissipation of the proposed antenna is 18 W. The proposed antenna has VSWR {<} 2.5 for all bands. Antenna gain is less than 1.8 dBi at 30-400 MHz and 2.5 dBi at 960-1220 MHz.