rhombic

Create a rhombic antenna

Since R2020b

Description

The default rhombic object creates a rhombic antenna resonating around 510 MHz. It consists of a rhombus with a feed at one acute angles and a termination resistor at the other acute angle. It has a simple design and is highly directional. These antennas are used in shortwave radio broadcasting and point-to-point communications.

Creation

Syntax

ant = rhombic

ant = rhombic(PropertyName=Value)

Description

ant = rhombic creates a rhombic antenna with default property values. The default dimensions are chosen for an operating frequency of around 510 MHz. The default rhombic antenna is fed at one acute angle and the other acute angle is terminated with a load of 500 ohms.

ant = rhombic(PropertyName=Value) sets properties using one or more name-value arguments. PropertyName is the property name and Value is the corresponding value. You can specify several name-value arguments in any order as PropertyName1=Value1,...,PropertyNameN=ValueN. Properties that you do not specify, retain their default values.

For example, ant = rhombic(ArmLength=3) creates a rhombic antenna with an arm of length 3 meters.

Properties

ArmLength — Length of arm

2 (default) | positive scalar

Length of each of the rhombus, specified as a scalar in meters.

Example: 4

Data Types: double

ArmElevation — Angle between adjacent arms at feed

20 (default) | positive scalar

The acute angle between the adjacent arms at the feed location, specified as a scalar in degrees.

Example: 40

Data Types: double

Width — Width of arm

0.1 (default) | positive scalar

Width of the arm of the rhombus, specified as a scalar in meters.

Example: 0.3

Data Types: double

Conductor — Type of metal material

metal("PEC") (default) | metal object

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

Example: metal("Copper")

Load — Lumped elements

[1x1 lumpedElement] (default) | lumpedElement object

Lumped elements added to the antenna feed, specified as a lumpedElement object. You can add a load anywhere on the surface of the antenna. By default, the load is at the feed.

Example: lumpedElement(Impedance=75)

Tilt — Tilt angle of antenna

0 (default) | scalar | vector

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

Example: 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.

Data Types: double

TiltAxis — Tilt axis of antenna

[1 0 0] (default) | three-element vector | 2-by-3 matrix | "X" | "Y" | "Z"

Tilt axis of the antenna, specified as one of these values:

• 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, specified as a 2-by-3 matrix corresponding to two three-element vectors of Cartesian coordinates. In this case, the antenna rotates around the line joining the two points.

• "x", "y", or "z" to describe a rotation about the x-, y-, or z-axis, respectively.

For more information, see Rotate Antennas and Arrays.

Example: [0 1 0]

Example: [0 0 0;0 1 0]

Example: "Z"

Data Types: double | string

Object Functions

axialRatio	Calculate and plot axial ratio of antenna or array
bandwidth	Calculate and plot absolute bandwidth of antenna or array
beamwidth	Beamwidth of antenna
charge	Charge distribution on antenna or array surface
current	Current distribution on antenna or array surface
design	Create antenna, array, or AI-based antenna resonating at specified frequency
efficiency	Calculate and plot radiation efficiency of antenna or array
EHfields	Electric and magnetic fields of antennas or embedded electric and magnetic fields of antenna element in arrays
feedCurrent	Calculate current at feed for antenna or array
impedance	Calculate and plot input impedance of antenna or scan impedance of array
info	Display information about antenna, array, or platform
memoryEstimate	Estimate memory required to solve antenna or array mesh
mesh	Generate and view mesh for antennas, arrays, and custom shapes
meshconfig	Change meshing mode of antenna, array, custom antenna, custom array, or custom geometry
msiwrite	Write antenna or array analysis data to MSI planet file
optimize	Optimize antenna and array catalog elements using SADEA or TR-SADEA algorithm
pattern	Plot radiation pattern of antenna, array, or embedded element of array
patternAzimuth	Azimuth plane radiation pattern of antenna or array
patternElevation	Elevation plane radiation pattern of antenna or array
peakRadiation	Calculate and mark maximum radiation points of antenna or array on radiation pattern
rcs	Calculate and plot monostatic and bistatic radar cross section (RCS) of platform, antenna, or array
resonantFrequency	Calculate and plot resonant frequency of antenna
returnLoss	Calculate and plot return loss of antenna or scan return loss of array
show	Display antenna, array structures, shapes, or platform
sparameters	Calculate S-parameters for antenna or array
stlwrite	Write mesh information to STL file
vswr	Calculate and plot voltage standing wave ratio (VSWR) of antenna or array element

Examples

Create Default Rhombic Antenna and Plot Radiation Pattern

Create a default rhombic antenna.

ant = rhombic

ant = 
  rhombic with properties:

       ArmLength: 2
    ArmElevation: 20
           Width: 0.1000
       Conductor: [1×1 metal]
            Tilt: 0
        TiltAxis: [1 0 0]
            Load: [1×1 lumpedElement]

View the antenna using the show function.

show(ant);

Plot the radiation pattern of the antenna at 510 MHz.

pattern(ant, 510e6);

References

[1] Decker, R. “The Influence of Gain and Current Attenuation on the Design of the Rhombic Antenna.” IRE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation 7, no. 2 (April 1959): 188–196.

Version History

Introduced in R2020b