Slot antenna

<p>A slot antenna consists of a <a href="/facts/Metal/PT8hNX6R">metal</a> surface, usually a flat plate, with one or more holes or slots cut out. When the plate is <a href="/facts/Driven_element/hzuNIeLB">driven</a> as an <a href="/facts/Antenna_(radio)/pGlcXBvc">antenna</a> by an applied <a href="/facts/Radio_frequency/aWku7h4R">radio frequency</a> current, the slot radiates <a href="/facts/Electromagnetic_wave/Ynx7ujCW">electromagnetic waves</a> in a way similar to a <a href="/facts/Dipole_antenna/GYWgnX72">dipole antenna</a>. The shape and size of the slot, as well as the driving frequency, determine the <a href="/facts/Radiation_pattern/5t0QU2mv">radiation pattern</a>.  Slot antennas are usually used at <a href="/facts/Ultrahigh_frequency/S6XDUaDY">UHF</a> and <a href="/facts/Microwave/HmVSN31Y">microwave</a> frequencies at which wavelengths are small enough that the plate and slot are conveniently small.   At these frequencies, the radio waves are often conducted by a <a href="/facts/Waveguide/tJS9Y0GH">waveguide</a>, and the antenna consists of slots in the waveguide; this is called a slotted waveguide antenna.   Multiple slots act as a <a href="/facts/Directional_antenna/oLesxknQ">directive</a> <a href="/facts/Array_antenna/HYRcdJsm">array antenna</a> and can emit a narrow fan-shaped beam of microwaves.   They are used in standard laboratory <a href="/facts/Microwave/HmVSN31Y">microwave</a> sources used for research, UHF television transmitting antennas, antennas on missiles and aircraft, <a href="/facts/Sector_antenna/tcXFbanS">sector antennas</a> for <a href="/facts/Cellular_base_station/BIKMtles">cellular base stations</a>, and particularly <a href="/facts/Marine_radar/G5h3tyk0">marine radar</a> antennas.   A slot antenna's main advantages are its size, design simplicity, and convenient adaptation to mass production using either waveguide or PC board technology.
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Slot antenna open-in-new

Slot antenna