Overview
Using materials like FRP (fiberglass) to conceal antennas on rooftops is a long-standing practice in the wireless industry. Jurisdictions and wireless operators often expect existing concealment materials will work for new mmWave frequencies used in 5G deployments. This paper addresses how a typical concealment material like FRP performs at mmWave frequencies.
All wireless antennas (panels, cylinders, etc.) come with their own protective cover, or radome, made of an RF-transparent material. When an antenna is hidden behind a concealment material like FRP, it acts as a second radome. At current sub-6 GHz frequency bands, the impact of FRP on antenna performance—transmission loss and antenna pattern distortion—is minimal. With the introduction of mmWave frequencies for 5G, we now need to evaluate the performance impacts of FRP on a mmWave antenna.
ConcealFab Testing Capabilities for mmWave
ConcealFab has an in-house RF test chamber and has developed test methods for evaluating concealment materials from current sub-6 GHz through the new mmWave bands. Testing performed at ConcealFab for mmWave includes:
