Rectangular microstrip antenna design suitable for undergraduate courses

This paper reports a simple but accurate new approach for the design and analysis of thin rectangular microstrip antennas. After modifications are introduced in the classical transmission line model, the antenna electrical parameters agree very well with simulations performed using commercial software. Moreover, designing the patch to operate at the X_in = 0 condition results in a symmetrical bandwidth. This new approach is suitable for computer-aided-design procedures and is clearly adequate for undergraduate courses. Students can implement it in a simple way by using mathematics software such as Mathematica.