Energy-Efficient Dynamic Directional Modulation with Electrically Small Antennas

This letter proposes a compact and energy-efficient directional modulation scheme for small and power constrained devices (e.g., Internet of Things wireless sensors). The scheme uses a uniform circular array of monopole antennas, with a single radiofrequency chain and antenna active at a time. The antennas can be located in close proximity, offering significant size reduction. Furthermore, the scheme was demonstrated to operate successfully with an array of 0.6 λ diameter. The system does not generate additional artificial noise, limiting interference to other systems. Finally, the antenna switching sequence can be randomly generated and without fine-tuned synchronization with the transmitter.