SPRADJ6 November   2026 AWR1243 , AWR1443 , AWR1642 , AWR1843 , AWR2188 , AWR2243 , AWR2544 , AWR2944 , AWR2944P , AWR6443 , AWR6843 , AWRL1432 , AWRL6432 , AWRL6844 , AWRL6888 , IWR1443 , IWR1642 , IWR1843 , IWR2188 , IWR2243 , IWR2944 , IWR6243 , IWR6443 , IWR6843 , IWRL1432 , IWRL6432 , IWRL6432W , IWRL6843 , IWRL6844

 

  1.   1
  2.   Abstract
  3. 1Introduction
    1. 1.1 What is a mmWave Radar Antenna?
    2. 1.2 Features of mmWave Radar Antennas
      1. 1.2.1 Fundamental Antenna Parameters
      2. 1.2.2 Fundamental Antenna Array Parameters
    3. 1.3 Antenna Type Selection
    4. 1.4 Critical Sections of Antenna
      1. 1.4.1 Source
      2. 1.4.2 Feeding Network
      3. 1.4.3 Radiating Element
    5. 1.5 Antenna Array and Pattern Selection
      1. 1.5.1 Virtual Antenna Array
    6. 1.6 PCB Material Impact on Antenna Performance
  4. 2Antenna Design Flow
    1. 2.1 End Application Evaluation
    2. 2.2 Form Factor and Stack-up Decision
    3. 2.3 Link Budget and Antenna Feature Definition
    4. 2.4 Single Antenna Element Design
    5. 2.5 Antenna Array Design
    6. 2.6 Layout Creation and Simulation
    7. 2.7 Fabrication and Design Validation
  5. 3Summary
  6. 4References

1.1 What is a mmWave Radar Antenna?

The mmWave radar sensors are used in various applications which involve object detection and tracking using range, velocity and angle estimation. For such sensing applications the sensor uses frequency modulated continuous wave chirp signals as shown in Figure 1-1which operate at frequency bands from 57GHz to 64GHz or 76GHz to 81GHz. These chirp signals are transmitted over the scan region of interest and the chirp signals reflected back from objects and ambient are received and then used for post processing, depending on the end use case or end equipment.

FMCW Chirp Figure 1-1 FMCW Chirp

The FMCW radar front end block diagram is shown in Figure 1-2. (1) is the Synthesizer which generates the FMCW chirp. (2) and (3) are the TX and RX antennas respectively. (4) is the mixer which takes the difference between the transmitted and received signals. Fourier transform of the IF (Intermediate frequency) signal is taken to obtain signal peaks in the frequency domain which corresponds to the range of an object. A 2D and 3D FFT further provides the velocity and angle values respectively.

Radar RF Front End Figure 1-2 Radar RF Front End

The transmission and reception of the chirp signals is enabled by the antennas which radiate according to the specific frequency of operation. The wavelength of the chirp signals falls in the millimeter range (for example: λ for a frequency of 60GHz is 5mm), thus the name mmWave radar. The dimensions of the antennas are also in the millimeter range to radiate at the desired operational frequency. The mmWave radar sensor boards commonly use the PCB printed patch antennas as shown in Figure 1-3.

AWRL6432BOOST EVM Antenna Figure 1-3 AWRL6432BOOST EVM Antenna