A seven-band co-integrated antenna for 5G/6G operations in sub-6 GHz and millimeter-wave frequencies

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2025年11月4日

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Md Khadimul Islam,
Md Nur Alam,
Carlos A. Araujo,
Elias A. Alwan

摘要

The use of millimeter-wave (mmWave) frequencies is increasing to meet the broader application needs of modern civilization. These bands are essential in 5G and beyond (Next-G) communication systems to provide wide bandwidth and high data rates. However, it is highly unlikely that the sub-6 GHz bands will be decommissioned anytime soon because of their long-range coverage and high-speed connectivity. Therefore, mmWave and sub-6 GHz antennas and radio frequency (RF) front ends must be integrated into the same system in modern radio designs. Placing various antennas on a single platform is challenging because of the different sizes of the radiating elements that correspond to a wide range of frequencies. To avoid higher-order mode coupling, high isolation is achieved by properly optimizing the placement of each aperture. In this work, we present a co-integrated shared-aperture antenna system capable of operating at seven frequency bands from 600 MHz to 39 GHz, covering both sub-6 GHz and mmWave spectra. Sub-6 GHz operation is achieved using four inverted-L antennas and a slotted patch covering 600 MHz to 6 GHz, while two 4 \(\times\) 4 patch arrays are used at 28 GHz and 39 GHz for mmWave. A fabricated prototype demonstrates excellent agreement between measured and simulated results, with consistently low crosstalk (typically below –20 dB), stable realized gain, and compact overall size (200 mm \(\times\) 85 mm). The proposed design ensures broad frequency coverage and compact integration, making it suitable for 5G/6G, satellite, vehicular, fixed wireless access, IAB, and defense applications requiring multi-band connectivity.