What is a dipole antenna and how does it work?

A dipole antenna is a simple and widely used antenna consisting of two conductive elements (usually wires or rods) of equal length, oriented end-to-end with a feed point at the center. A half-wave dipole has a total length of half the wavelength (λ/2). When RF current flows through it, it creates an electromagnetic field that radiates perpendicular to the antenna axis. The dipole has an omnidirectional pattern in the horizontal plane and a figure-8 pattern in the vertical plane, with a gain of about 2.15 dBi and characteristic impedance of 73 ohms.