Vertically-integrated differential filtering patch antenna excited by a balun bandpass filter

This study develops a differential-fed filtering patch antenna, which features superior frequency selectivity, compact size, low cross-polarisation, and symmetrical radiation patterns. The proposed antenna consists of a rectangular patch on the top layer, which is differentially fed by a balun bandpass filter on the bottom layer. A pair of rectangular coupling slots were etched on the middle layer for energy coupling. The patch antenna performs not only as the radiator but also as the last resonator of the whole filter circuit for compactness. A prototype of the proposed filtering antenna operating at 2.45 GHz was fabricated and tested. The measured in-band peak gain is 5.9 dBi with steep roll-off at band edges, and the out-of-band gain is less than - 25 dBi. Moreover, symmetrical radiation patterns and low cross-polarisation levels of - 22 dB are also realised for the proposed filtering antenna.