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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Minkowski fractal antenna based on 3D printing

M Richterova1, J Olivova1, M Popela2 and V Blazek1

1
Department of Communication Technologies, Electronic Warfare and Radiolocation.
University of Defence, Kounicova 65, 662 10, Brno, Czech Republic
2
Department of Radio Electronics, Brno University of Technology, Technicka 10, 616
00, Brno, Czech Republic

E-mail: marie.richterova@unob.cz

Abstract. This paper describes the manufacturing of a Minkowski fractal antenna using a 3D
commercial printer. The Minkowski fractal antenna was chosen for its simplicity and practical
versatility. The paper also describes a manufacturing procedure for Minkowski fractal antenna
by using metalic sprays. The design of the Minkowski fractal antenna in the MATLAB
application using the Antenna Toolbox extension is also described, including 3D printing
procedures, post processing procedures (plating) and practical testing of its functionality. The
measured results are compared to simulations and then analysed.

1. Introduction
Fractal antennas belong to the group of small broadband multi-frequency antennas. Fractal antennas
can be used in modern communication technologies. Fractal antennas are expected to be used in the
construction of small satellites, where not only size but also low weight is crucial.
The paper presents the possibilities of using 3D printing in the production of Minkowski fractal
antennas. Currently, the development of 3D printing technologies, both in the field of printers and in
the field of 3D printing materials, presents new and interesting possibilities for the use of this
technology for various applications in the field of communication technologies. 3D printing is the
process of creating a three-dimensional solid object from a digital file, where by the resulting printed
object is gradually created by laying down (printing) continuous layers of material until the entire
object is completed. There are many 3D printer manufacturers around the world who are interested in
developing and producing different types and sizes of 3D printers.
The Prusa i3 MK3S+ 3D printer manufactured by Prusa Research was used to produce the
Minkowski fractal antenna. This 3D printer has a print area of 25 x 21 x 21 cm with the ability to
adjust the print quality (print height) between 0.05 - 0.35 mm.
In order to print the Minkowski fractal antenna on the 3D printer, it was necessary to model
(design) parts of the antenna in a program designed for 3D modeling. Nowadays, many software
programs are available for drawing 3D objects. The software Onshape (freeware) was chosen for
modelling the Minkowski fractal antenna. The Onshape is a computer design software system supplied
over the Internet through a model “Software as a Service” [1]. The Figure 1 shows modelled
Minkowski fractal antenna in Onshape program.

Content from this work may be used under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 licence. Any further distribution
of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.
Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd 1
ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Figure 1. Modelled Minkowski fractal antenna in Onshape.

2. Analysis of Minkowski fractal antennas

A fractal is a type of mathematical shape that is infinitely complex. Essentially, a fractal is a pattern
that repeats forever, and each part of a fractal, no matter how close or far away you are, looks very
similar to the whole picture [2].
A conventional wired antenna has limited bandwidth. In practical applications, a wired antenna
cannot always be used because its physical dimensions are too large. This is the reason why a suitable
replacement for wired antennas has been sought for applications where large bandwidth is required
simultaneously with small antenna size [3].
The fractal concept can be used to physically reduce the size of the antenna using fractals such as
Koch curve, Koch snowflake, Minkowski fractal and Sierpinski triangle. The fractal antenna concept
can be used to achieve multiple antenna resonances and increase the bandwidth of each individual
band due to the self-similarity of the fractal in terms of its geometry [3].
The procedure for constructing the Minkowski fractal is illustrated in Figure 2.

Figure 2. Minkowski fractal and its iterations from 0 to 3.

The zero iteration of the Minkowski fractal is a square that is formed by four zero iterations of the
Minkowski curve. The zero iteration of the Minkowski curve is a straight line. At each higher iteration
an octal generator is applied to each segment of the curve, this procedure produces the next iterations
of the fractal [4].
The fractal geometry defines a structure with long lengths that fits into a compact region.
This property of fractals can be used to design miniaturized resonant antennas due to their reduced
physical length. The shape of the fractal is formed by an iterative mathematical process [5].

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Simulations of the properties of the Minkowski fractal antennas of the 1st and 2nd iterations were
performed in the MATLAB programming environment using the Antenna Toolbox.
The first and second iterations of the Minkowski fractal were chosen because of the fabrication of
Minkowski fractal antennas using 3D printing. Higher iterations of the Minkowski fractal cannot be
used to produce a planar antenna based on the Minkowski fractal because it would not be possible to
maintain the desired fractal shape during printing.
The power radiation pattern for vertical and horizontal polarization and the impedance of the
Minkowski fractal antenna were modeled in the Antenna Toolbox in order to subsequently verify the
characteristics of the fabricated antenna by measurements in an anechoic chamber and using a Rohde
& Schwarz analyzer.
The center frequency for the zero iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna was chosen to be 1.8
GHz. The base length of the antenna for the zero iteration of the Minkowski fractal corresponds to
0.5*wavelength, so the basic size of the patch antenna is 8.33 x 8.33 cm. The antenna thickness was
chosen to be 2 mm to allow the designed antenna to be fabricated using 3D printing followed by metal
spray coating. In order to connect the SMA feed connector to the antenna, it was necessary to design
the ground plane to maintain mechanical strength. The dimensions of the ground plane are basic
antenna length + 40mm and basic antenna length + 16mm, the size of the ground plane is 12.33 x 9.33
cm. For simulating the designed antenna in Antenna Toolbox, FR4 dielectric with the properties of r
= 4.8 and thickness of 6 mm was used. The antenna impedance was calculated in the frequency band
from 1 GHz to 5 GHz with increments of 5 MHz.
Subsequently, a planar fractal antenna was designed for the 1st and 2nd iteration of the Minkowski
fractal, see Figure 3.

Figure 3. The 1st and 2nd iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna.

For the selected resonant frequencies, the power radiation patterns were calculated and displayed,
see Figure 4 and Figure 5. The impedance of the designed antennas was calculated in order to compare
with the results obtained by measurements.

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Figure 4. Power 3D radiation pattern of 1st iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna.

Figure 5. Power 3D radiation pattern of 2nd iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna.

3. Manufacturing of Minkowski fractal antennas

The polylactide filament, commonly known as PLA, is one of the most popular materials used in
desktop 3D printing. It is the default filament choice for most extrusion-based 3D printers because it
can be printed at low temperatures and does not require a heated substrate. PLA is easy to print, a very
inexpensive material that can be used to create parts for a wide range of applications. The PLA
filament one of the most environmentally friendly filaments on the market today. The advantages of
PLA are low cost, it is a tough, strong and very durable material. Disadvantages include low heat
resistance, PLA is not suitable for exposure to direct sunlight [6].

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

After performing the simulation in Antenna Toolbox, it was necessary to create 3D objects in the
online programming environment Onshape. Subsequently, the data file for 3D printing can be
implemented in the PrusaSlicer software environment.
PLA filament was used to 3D print the planar Minkowski fractal antennas, because the fabricated
antennas should not be mechanically stressed. The nozzle temperature was chosen to be 210 °C and
the heated substrate temperature 60 °C. Both temperatures are within the recommended functional
range for a 3D printer.
After printing the antennas on the 3D printer, the antennas were sprayed with black paint and then
the surface was smoothed so that the copper spray adhered well to the surface. Each copper part of the
antenna was covered with a total of four layers of spray paint with a copper content of 99.9%. After
the copper layers were applied, the individual antenna components were glued together and a 50 Ω
SMA connector was attached to measure the power radiation pattern. The SMA connectors were glued
with conductive glue and painted with conductive varnish to achieve an optimal conductive
connection. The fabricated planar fractal antennas are presented in Figure 6.

.
Figure 6. Planar Minkowski fractal antennas 3D printing.

4. Antenna performance measurements and results

In order to compare the radiation patterns of the simulated Minkowski fractal antennas and the printed
Minkowski fractal antennas, it is necessary to perform the measurements in an anechoic chamber to
eliminate the negative influence of the surrounding environment on the experiment. Tests of the
printed antennas were performed in an anechoic chamber. The Figure 7 shows the test setup the
anechoic chamber.

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Figure 7. Test setup in the anechoic chamber.

The proposed planar Minkowski fractal antennas based on 3D printing fabricated (see Figure 6) and
their power radiation patterns were measured in an anechoic chamber (see Figure 8).

Figure 8. Power radiation pattern of 3D printing Minkowski fractal antennas for 3.3875 GHz.

The impedances of the designed Minkowski fractal antennas and the standing wave ratio were
measured using a vector analyzer ZNLE6-Vector Network Analyzer manufactured by Rohde &
Schwarz with frequency range from 1MHz to 6 GHz. The results show the resonant frequencies of the
1st iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna (see Figure 9) and the resonant frequencies of the 2nd
iteration of the Minkowski fractal antenna (see Figure 10).

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Figure 9. Standing wave ratio (SWR) of the1st iteration of 3D printing Minkowski fractal antenna.

Figure 10. Standing wave ratio (SWR) of the 2nd iteration of 3D printing Minkowski fractal
antenna.

By measuring the impedance and standing wave ratio of the printed fractal antennas using a vector
analyzer, the resonant frequencies in the frequency band from 2 to 6 GHz were determined, see Figure 11.
The resonant frequencies obtained by the simulations were compared with the measured values of
the resonant frequencies, see Table 1.

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

Table 1. Simulated and measured resonant frequencies.

1st iteration of the 2nd iteration of the

Minkowski fractal antenna Minkowski fractal antenna
Simulated Measured Simulated Measured
resonant resonant resonant resonant
frequency frequency frequency frequency
(GHz) (GHz) (GHz) (GHz)
3.2172 2.9625 3.8889 3.2740
3.3929 2.9875 4.2778 3.8975
3.5687 3.0125 4.4444 4.4195
3.9788 3.0375 5.0000 4.8980
4.2717 3.3875 5.6111 5.3620
4.3889 3.9625
4.8283 4.5125

Figure 11. Impedance of the 1st and 2nd iteration of 3D printing Minkowski fractal antenna.

It can be seen in the Figure 11 that the simulated resonant frequencies of 3.8889 GHz and 4.4444
GHz and the measured resonant frequencies of 3.9195 GHz and 4.4195 GHz are very similar. The
other measured and simulated resonant frequencies are also close to each other. There is a difference
between the simulated values of the resonant frequencies and the measured values of the resonant
frequencies for the 1st and 2nd Minkowski fractal antenna interactions (see table 1). The difference is
due to the fact that in the simulations FR4 was used as the dielectric with the properties listed in the
dielectric catalogue in the Antenna Toolbox. The printed Minkowski fractal antennas were made of
PLA filament. The dielectric properties of that PLA filament are not tabulated, so it was not possible
to include these properties in the simulations. Measuring the dielectric properties of 3D printing
filaments is the subject of our further research.

5. Conclusion
The measured results were compared with the simulation results. There is a difference between the
results obtained by simulations in MATLAB and the results obtained by measurements on the vector

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ICEMS-BIOMED-2022 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Materials Science and Engineering 1254 (2022) 012019 doi:10.1088/1757-899X/1254/1/012019

analyzer and in the anechoic chamber. If the specific procedure of manufacturing planar fractal
antennas based on 3D printing is followed, the measurement results can be expected to be close to the
simulated values.
Simulated Minkowski fractal antennas with dielectric properties of filaments for 3D printing would
contribute significantly to the accuracy of the results obtained by simulations and measurements.
The obtained results show that planar Minkowski fractal antennas are suitable for applications
where miniature dimensions and low device weight are required. The designed and realized antennas
can be used for military applications as well as for civilian applications, e.g. for small satellites and for
5G communication technologies.

Acknowledgments
The work presented in this article was supported by specific research of the University of Defence
entitled “Modern Antenna Systems and Methods of their Management”, and by the Czech Republic
Ministry of Defence – the University of Defence development program “AIROPS”.

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Arrays Applied Microwave & Wireless pp 34-46
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