Electrically Small Metamaterial-Inspired Antennas with Active Near Field Resonant Parasitic Elements: From Theory to Practice

By augmenting several classes of metamaterial-inspired near-field resonant parasitic (NFRP) electrically small antennas (ESAs) with active (non-Foster) circuits, we have achieved performance characteristics surpassing their fundamental passive bounds. The designs not only have high radiation efficiencies, but they also exhibit large frequency bandwidths, large beam widths, large front-to-back ratios, and high directivities. Furthermore, the various initially theoretical and simulated designs have led to practical realizations. These active NFRP ESAs will be reviewed and recently reported designs will be introduced and discussed.