Isolation Enhancement in Microstrip Antenna Arrays 
Slotted Meander-Line Resonator (SMLR) is implemented by creating defect in the microstrip structure. This resonator is designed to block the surface current at the resonant frequency of the two patch antennas coupled along H-plane operating at 3.6 GHz. The proposed configuration provides an improvement in isolation by 10 dB (measured value) with a reduced edge-to-edge spacing of 7 mm (λ0/9). This resonator has been designed, simulated, and validated experimentally. KeywordsAntenna array, isolation enhancement, meander lines, mutual coupling reduction, resonators.
Mutual Coupling Reduction in Patch Antenna Arrays Using a UC-EBG Superstrate
Reducing mutual coupling between elements of an antenna array is one of the main topics in array designs. The use of electromagnetic band-gap (EBG) structures built by microstrip technology is an attractive way to mitigate the mutual coupling problem. This letter describes a novel configuration of uniplanar compact electromagnetic band-gap (UC-EBG) structures to reduce mutual coupling between the radiating elements. The idea is to use the UC-EBG structures placed on top of the antenna layer. The main objective is to reduce both the element separation and the mutual coupling between the patch antennas, which in turn increases antenna directivity. The proposed configuration eliminates drawbacks of similar structures presented in previous works.
rPET detectors design and data processing
Small animal PET systems based on rotating planar detectors posses some interesting advantages for high sensitivity, high resolution imaging. We have designed the rPET detectors based on MLS crystals assembled on a 30times30 matrix optically coupled to a flat-panel PS-PMT. Weighted position readout circuits pre-process the 64 signals from the 8times8 anodes matrix, which are digitized using a charge-integrating converter. The amplification electronics, including the trigger output for coincidence detection, and the high voltage supply are integrated in a three PCBs stack that forms the base attached to the back of the PMT. The whole assembly is enclosed in a light tight, lead (Pb) shielded aluminum box. The detectors are mounted on a rotating gantry with more than 180 degrees rotation span. The digitized events are screened and histogramed, and a modified center of gravity algorithm removes from the position calculation those signals with poor signal to noise ratio. Apparent mean crystal size on the 511 keV field-flood images is 0.6 mm, mean peak-to-valley ratio is better than 8, and intrinsic resolution is 1.5 mm at the central row, with the energy window wide open. Sensitivity (CPS) for a pair of these detectors set in coincidence at 160 mm distance is 1%