Small-Size Tapered Slot Antenna (TSA) Design for use in 5G Phased Array Applications

─ The design and development of a compact tapered slot antenna (TSA) for the fifth generation (5G) phased array communications is described in this manuscript. The proposed low-profile TSA element is designed on a Rogers RT 5880 (ε=2.2 and δ=0.0009) dielectric to work in the frequency range from 21 to 23 GHz. The configuration of the employed TSA antenna elements is composed of a slot-line flare from a small gap to a large opening, matching to free space’s wave impedance. Eight TSA elements with well-defined endfire radiation patterns have been used on the top portion of a mobile-phone PCB to form a 1×8 linear phased array. The TSA elements are fed by hockey-stick baluns. In addition, the radiation performance and SAR characteristics of the phased array 5G antenna in the vicinity of user’s hand & head have been investigated in this study. The results show that the proposed design provides good characteristics in terms of S-parameters, antenna gain, efficiency, SAR, and beam steering, which fit the need of 5G cellular communications. Index Terms ─ 5G wireless networks, cellular communications, planar phased array, TSA.