helixMultifilar

Creates bifilar or quadrafilar helix or conical helix antenna on circular ground plane

Since R2018b

Description

The helixMultifilar object creates a bifilar or quadrafilar helix or conical helix antenna on a circular ground plane. You can create both short-circuited and open-ended helix multifilar antennas. Bifilar and quadrafilar helix antennas are used in aerospace and defense applications.

The width of the strip is related to the diameter of an equivalent cylinder by the equation

$$w=2d=4r$$

where:

• w is the width of the strip.

• d is the diameter of an equivalent cylinder.

• r is the radius of an equivalent cylinder.

For a given cylinder radius, use the cylinder2strip utility function to calculate the equivalent width. The default helix antenna is end-fed. The circular ground plane is on the xy- plane. Helix antennas are commonly used in axial mode. In this mode, the helix circumference is comparable to the operating wavelength, and the helix has maximum directivity along its axis. In normal mode, the helix radius is small compared to the operating wavelength. In this mode, the helix radiates broadside, that is, in the plane perpendicular to its axis. The basic equations for the helix are

$$\begin{array}{l}x=r\cos (\theta )\\ y=r\sin (\theta )\\ z=S\theta \end{array}$$

where:

• r is the radius of the helical dipole.

• θ is the winding angle.

• S is the spacing between turns.

For a given pitch angle in degrees, use the helixpitch2spacing utility function to calculate the spacing between the turns in meters.

Creation

Syntax

ant = helixMultifilar

ant = helixMultifilar(Name,Value)

Description

ant = helixMultifilar creates a bifilar or quadrafilar helix or conical helix antenna operating in the axial mode. The default multifilar helical antenna is end-fed and has a circular ground plane on the xy- plane. The default operating frequency is around 2 GHz.

ant = helixMultifilar(Name,Value) sets properties using one or more name-value pairs. For example, ant = helixMultifilar('Radius',28e-03) creates a multifilar helix with turns of radius 28e-03 m.

Properties

NumArms — Number of helical elements

4 (default) | 2

Number of helical elements, specified as 4 or 2. Specify two elements to create a bifilar helix antenna, and four elements to create a quadrafilar helix antenna.

Example: 'NumArms',2

Example: ant.NumArms = 2

Data Types: double

Radius — Radius of turns

0.0220 (default) | positive scalar integer | two-element vector

Radius of the turns, specified as a positive scalar integer in meters or a two element vector with each element unit in meters. In the two-element vector, the first element specifies the bottom radius and the second element specifies the top radius of the conical helix antenna.

Example: 'Radius',28e-03

Example: ant.Radius = 28e-03

Data Types: double

Width — Width of strip

1000e-03 (default) | positive scalar integer

Width of the strip, specified as a positive scalar integer in meters.

Example: 'Width',0.2

Example: ant.Width = 0.2

Data Types: double

Turns — Number of turns

3 (default) | scalar integer

Number of turns, specified as a scalar integer.

Example: 'Turns',4

Example: ant.Turns = 4

Data Types: double

Spacing — Spacing between turns

0.0350 (default) | positive scalar integer

Spacing between the turns, specified as a positive scalar integer in meters.

Example: 'Spacing',7.5e-2

Example: ant.Spacing = 7.5e-2

Data Types: double

ShortEnds — Status of helix ends

0 (default) | 1

Status of helix ends, specified as 0 or 1. By default, the helixMultifilar is an open circuit. Setting the property to 1 makes the helix antenna short circuit.

Example: 'ShortEnds',1

Example: ant.ShortEnds = 1

Data Types: double

WindingDirection — Direction of helix turns (windings)

'CW' | 'CCW'

Direction of the helix turns (windings), specified as 'CW' for clockwise or 'CCW' for counter-clockwise.

Example: 'WindingDirection','CW'

Example: ant.WindingDirection = 'CW'

Data Types: char | string

FeedStubHeight — Height of feeding stub from ground plane

1.000e-03 (default) | positive scalar integer

Height of the feeding stub from the ground plane, specified as a positive scalar integer in meters.

Example: 'FeedStubHeight',7.5e-2

Example: ant.FeedStubHeight = 7.5e-2

Data Types: double

GroundPlaneRadius — Ground plane radius

0.0750 (default) | positive scalar integer

Ground plane radius, specified as a positive scalar integer in meters. By default, the ground plane is on the xy- plane and is symmetrical about the origin.

Setting this value to Inf uses the infinite ground plane technique for antenna analysis.

Example: 'GroundPlaneRadius',2.05

Example: ant.GroundPlaneRadius = 7.5e-2

Data Types: double

FeedVoltage — Excitation voltage applied to individual antenna feeds

1 (default) | scalar integer | vector integers

Excitation voltage applied to individual antenna feeds, specified as a scalar integer or vector integers. A scalar value applies the same voltage to all feeds.

Example: 'FeedVoltage',[1 2]

Example: ant.FeedVoltage = [1 2]

Data Types: double

FeedPhase — Excitation voltage phase applied to individual antenna feeds

0 (default) | scalar integer | vector integers

Excitation voltage phase applied to individual antenna feeds, specified as a scalar integer or vector integers. A scalar value applies the same voltage phase to all feeds.

Example: 'FeedPhase',[0 45]

Example: ant.FeedPhase = [0 45]

Data Types: double

Substrate — Type of dielectric material

'Air' (default) | dielectric object

Type of dielectric material used as the substrate, specified as a dielectric object. You can specify only one dielectric layer in the helixMultifilar object. When using the Substrate property, specify the same radius for all the turns. When using a dielectric material other than air, the number of turns in the helix should be greater than 1. For more information, see dielectric. For more information on dielectric substrate meshing, see Meshing.

Example: d = dielectric('FR4'); ant = helixMultifilar('Substrate',d)

Example: d = dielectric('FR4'); ant.Substrate = d;

Conductor — Type of metal material

'PEC' (default) | metal object

Type of the metal used as a conductor, specified as a metal material object. You can choose any metal from the MetalCatalog or specify a metal of your choice. For more information, see metal. For more information on metal conductor meshing, see Meshing.

Example: m = metal('Copper'); 'Conductor',m

Example: m = metal('Copper'); ant.Conductor = m

Load — Lumped elements

[1x1 lumpedElement] (default) | lumped element object

Lumped elements added to the antenna feed, specified as a lumped element object. You can add a load anywhere on the surface of the antenna. By default, the load is at the origin. For more information, see lumpedElement.

Example: 'Load',lumpedelement. lumpedelement is the object for the load created using lumpedElement.

Example: ant.Load = lumpedElement('Impedance',75)

Data Types: double

Tilt — Tilt angle of antenna

0 (default) | scalar | vector

Tilt angle of the antenna, specified as a scalar or vector with each element unit in degrees. For more information, see Rotate Antennas and Arrays.

Example: Tilt=90

Example: Tilt=[90 90],TiltAxis=[0 1 0;0 1 1] tilts the antenna at 90 degrees about the two axes defined by the vectors.

Note

The wireStack antenna object only accepts the dot method to change its properties.

Data Types: double

TiltAxis — Tilt axis of antenna

[1 0 0] (default) | three-element vector of Cartesian coordinates | two three-element vectors of Cartesian coordinates | 'X' | 'Y' | 'Z'

Tilt axis of the antenna, specified as:

• Three-element vector of Cartesian coordinates in meters. In this case, each coordinate in the vector starts at the origin and lies along the specified points on the X-, Y-, and Z-axes.

• Two points in space, each specified as three-element vectors of Cartesian coordinates. In this case, the antenna rotates around the line joining the two points in space.

• A string input describing simple rotations around one of the principal axes, 'X', 'Y', or 'Z'.

For more information, see Rotate Antennas and Arrays.

Example: TiltAxis=[0 1 0]

Example: TiltAxis=[0 0 0;0 1 0]

Example: TiltAxis = 'Z'

Data Types: double

Object Functions

show	Display antenna, array structures or shapes
axialRatio	Axial ratio of antenna
beamwidth	Beamwidth of antenna
charge	Charge distribution on antenna or array surface
current	Current distribution on antenna or array surface
design	Design prototype antenna or arrays for resonance around specified frequency
efficiency	Radiation efficiency of antenna
EHfields	Electric and magnetic fields of antennas; Embedded electric and magnetic fields of antenna element in arrays
impedance	Input impedance of antenna; scan impedance of array
mesh	Mesh properties of metal, dielectric antenna, or array structure
meshconfig	Change mesh mode of antenna structure
optimize	Optimize antenna or array using SADEA optimizer
pattern	Radiation pattern and phase of antenna or array; Embedded pattern of antenna element in array
patternAzimuth	Azimuth pattern of antenna or array
patternElevation	Elevation pattern of antenna or array
rcs	Calculate and plot radar cross section (RCS) of platform, antenna, or array
returnLoss	Return loss of antenna; scan return loss of array
sparameters	Calculate S-parameter for antenna and antenna array objects
vswr	Voltage standing wave ratio of antenna

Examples

Quadrafilar Helix

Create and view a Quadrafilar helix antenna.

ant = helixMultifilar

ant = 
  helixMultifilar with properties:

              NumArms: 4
               Radius: 0.0220
                Width: 1.0000e-03
                Turns: 3
              Spacing: 0.0350
            ShortEnds: 0
     WindingDirection: 'CCW'
       FeedStubHeight: 1.0000e-03
    GroundPlaneRadius: 0.0750
          FeedVoltage: 1
            FeedPhase: 0
            Substrate: [1x1 dielectric]
            Conductor: [1x1 metal]
                 Tilt: 0
             TiltAxis: [1 0 0]
                 Load: [1x1 lumpedElement]

show(ant)

Bifilar Helix

Create and view a bifilar helix antenna.

ant=helixMultifilar('NumArms',2)

ant = 
  helixMultifilar with properties:

              NumArms: 2
               Radius: 0.0220
                Width: 1.0000e-03
                Turns: 3
              Spacing: 0.0350
            ShortEnds: 0
     WindingDirection: 'CCW'
       FeedStubHeight: 1.0000e-03
    GroundPlaneRadius: 0.0750
          FeedVoltage: 1
            FeedPhase: 0
            Substrate: [1x1 dielectric]
            Conductor: [1x1 metal]
                 Tilt: 0
             TiltAxis: [1 0 0]
                 Load: [1x1 lumpedElement]

show(ant)

Radiation Pattern of Conical Multifilar Helix Antenna

Create and view a conical multifilar helix antenna of radii, 0.0220 m and 0.00800 m respectively.

ant = helixMultifilar('Radius',[0.0080,0.0220],'ShortEnds',1)

ant = 
  helixMultifilar with properties:

              NumArms: 4
               Radius: [0.0080 0.0220]
                Width: 1.0000e-03
                Turns: 3
              Spacing: 0.0350
            ShortEnds: 1
     WindingDirection: 'CCW'
       FeedStubHeight: 1.0000e-03
    GroundPlaneRadius: 0.0750
          FeedVoltage: 1
            FeedPhase: 0
            Substrate: [1x1 dielectric]
            Conductor: [1x1 metal]
                 Tilt: 0
             TiltAxis: [1 0 0]
                 Load: [1x1 lumpedElement]

show(ant)

Plot the pattern of the antenna at 3 GHz.

pattern(ant,3e9)

Overlay the antenna on the pattern.

Quadfilar Helix Antenna with Dielectric Substrate

Create a custom quadfilar helix antenna with a FR4 dielectric substrate.

d = dielectric('FR4'); 
ant = helixMultifilar('Radius',22e-3 ,'NumArms',4,'Width',1e-3, 'Turns',3, 'Spacing',35e-3 ,'FeedStubHeight',1e-3, 'Substrate', d)

ant = 
  helixMultifilar with properties:

              NumArms: 4
               Radius: 0.0220
                Width: 1.0000e-03
                Turns: 3
              Spacing: 0.0350
            ShortEnds: 0
     WindingDirection: 'CCW'
       FeedStubHeight: 1.0000e-03
    GroundPlaneRadius: 0.0750
          FeedVoltage: 1
            FeedPhase: 0
            Substrate: [1x1 dielectric]
            Conductor: [1x1 metal]
                 Tilt: 0
             TiltAxis: [1 0 0]
                 Load: [1x1 lumpedElement]

View quadfilar helix antenna.

show(ant)

Version History

Introduced in R2018b