Transparent Antenna Technology and Its Application in Space

This paper is focused on the application of transparent antennas to address the issues related to the unpleasant appearance and non-aerodynamic behavior of traditional antennas. Transparent antennas are divided in two main categories. In the first category, the resonant structure and the ground plane of an antenna, which is usually made of metal, is made of thin film transparent materials or a metallic mesh. In the second category, the structure of a dielectric resonator antenna (DRA), which is made opaque dielectrics, is realized, using a transparent dielectric, such as glass. In this paper, common types of transparent antennas and the methods of realizing each of these antennas are reviewed. The paper also discusses different potential applications of such antennas, especially space applications to save the limited available mass budget in small satellites.