Bandwidth extended balanced tightly coupled dipole array additively manufactured modular aperture

An antenna assembly method comprising:

• additively manufacturing an integral element as a single continuous piece of material, the integral element comprising:
• a balanced antenna feed configured to receive a differential signal;
• a ground plane;
• a first conductive dipole arm in planar alignment with a surface of the ground plane;
• a second conductive dipole arm in planar alignment with the surface of the ground plane and adjacent to the first conductive dipole arm;
• a first feedline in electrical communication with the first conductive dipole arm and the balanced antenna feed;
• a second feedline in electrical communication with the second conductive dipole arm and the balanced antenna feed;
• and
• a conductive wall in electrical communication with the ground plane and having an end in parallel with the ground plane and adjacent to, and physically separate from, the second conductive dipole arm, an axial length of the conductive wall being orthogonal to the ground plane;
• and
• attaching a superstrate to the integral element.