The present invention relates to a receiving element for orthogonally polarized high-frequency signals or, in accordance with the reciprocity principle of antennae, a radiation element for such signals realized in a similar way, this element comprising a dielectric layer on both sides of a first high-frequency transmission line whose end forms an exciting probe.
The invention also relates to a planar antenna comprising an array of juxtaposed elements of this type, and is particularly used in the field of receiving 12 GHz television signals transmitted by satellites. Obviously, in view of the reciprocity principle of an antenna, a receiving element (or an antenna constituted by an array of receiving elements) is capable of functioning as a radiating element (radiating antenna) without any modifications of its characteristics. This remark holds without any exception throughout the following description, and the word receiving, receive, receiver can at all times be replaced by the words transmission, transmit, radiating.
A planar antenna comprising such elements is described in the article "New wideband high-gain stripline planar array for 12 GHz satellite TV" by E. Rammos, published in the periodical Electronics Letters, Volume 18, No. 6, Mar. 18, 1982, pages 252 and 253. In spite of an encouraging performance, this antenna has not proved to be completely satisfactory as regards its efficiency.