An antenna converts electric energy to radio waves and vice versa. It consists of a transmitter and receiver. There are different types of antennas including Yagi-Uda antennas, helix antennas, parabolic antennas, loop antennas, and horn antennas. Each antenna type has distinct characteristics like directionality, frequency range, and applications. For example, Yagi-Uda antennas have high gain and directivity for frequencies from 300MHz to 3GHz, while helix antennas are omni-directional for VHF and UHF bands.