Electrically small monopoles: Classical vs. Self-Resonant

This paper shows that the Q-factor and VSWR of a monopole are significantly lowered when made resonant by reactive loading (as is used in practice).

Comparison with a self-resonant Koch fractal monopole of equal height gives similar values of VSWR and Q-factor.

Thus, the various electrically small monopoles (self-resonant and reactively loaded) offer comparable performance when ideal and lossless. However, in selecting the optimum design, conductor losses and mechanical construction at the frequency of interest must be considered.

In essence, a trade-off is necessary to obtain an efficient, electrically small antenna suitable for the application in hand.

M. C. Walden, “On using the classical monopole for comparison with other electrically small self-resonant monopole antennas of equal height”, IEEE International Antennas and Propagation Symposium, Columbus, OH, USA, 22–27 June 2003.

doi:10.1109/APS.2003.1217457