Reconfigurability is a vital feature of future agile millimeter wave systems for sensing, imaging, wireless, and satellite communications. Reconfigurable antennas are an integral part of such systems as they can control polarization, frequency, radiation pattern, or characteristic impedance.

  1. Reconfigurable Polarization Slot Antenna Mounts
  2. Polarization Reconfigurable Eccentric Annular Ring Slot Antenna Design
  3. Polarization Reconfigurable U-slot Patch Antenna

Reconfigurable Polarization Slot Antenna Mounts

Paraffin-Based Reconfigurable Components at Millimeter Wave

Selvam, YogeshwariPanneer, et al. 'Novel frequency-and pattern-reconfigurable rhombic patch antenna with switchable polarization.' IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letter, vol.16, pp.1639-1642,2017. Rasool, Maryam, et al. 'A compact open complementary split ring resonator inspired triband reconfigurable coplanar waveguide fed antenna.'

Reconfigurable Polarization Slot Antenna

Figure 1: Multiphysiscs simulation results for Von Mises stress and temperature distribution of the paraffin PCM actuator for input voltage of 2 V.

A polarization-reconfigurable slot antenna, for WLAN applications, is presented in this paper. The antenna incorporates a reconfigurable Wilkinson power divider-based feed network, which couples electromagnetic energy to a decagonal slot in the ground plane. The approach, presented herein, is based on electronically reconfiguring the phase difference, between the antenna's feeding ports, to. Polarization switchable active antenna can be used in spatial power combiner in the compact size. The reconfigurable antenna proposed in this paper operates at the three different polarizations (Linear, RHCP, and LHCP) with the frequency 2.2 GHz. It has been fabricated on low cost substrate. It can switch the polarization using the PIN diode. A CPW-fed circular polarization reconfigurable antenna is proposed in this paper. The antenna consists of two symmetrically placed inverted L-shaped slots. By using a T-type bias device to change the bias states of two PIN diodes which connect the two slots with the feed port respectively, right-hand circular polarization (RHCP) and left-hand. A reconfigurable antenna is an antenna capable of modifying its frequency and radiation properties dynamically, in a controlled and reversible manner. In order to provide a dynamic response, reconfigurable antennas integrate an inner mechanism (such as RF switches, varactors, mechanical actuators or tunable materials) that enable the intentional redistribution of the RF currents over the.

The main goal of this project is to design low-loss millimeter wave (mmW) RF components using novel materials such as paraffin. Alkane or paraffin is an organic phase change material (PCM) that exhibits low a dielectric loss, (tan⁡δ=6.6E-4 at 110 GHz), with a relative dielectric constant of 2.26. Paraffin is also a mechanical PCM that undergoes a 15% volumetric change through its solid-liquid phase change.

Due to its unique electrical and mechanical properties, paraffin PCM variable capacitors are very attractive for designing reconfigurable antennas and distributed loaded line phase shifters at mmW band.

Figure 2: Micrograph of the fabricated reconfigurable antenna.

In our group, we have developed a continuously reconfigurable antenna at 100 GHz by monolithically integrating the paraffin PCM capacitors with a slot antenna. Designed antenna has a reconfiguration range of 96–102.2 GHz with a maximum gain of 3 dBi. (Figures 1—2)

In addition, we have also developed a distributed loaded line phase shifter based on a new class of electro-thermally actuated RF MEMS devices using paraffin PCM. Designed phase shifter has a figure-of merit of 71.8°/dB achieved while maintaining a return loss more than 12 dB.

Figure 3: Multiphysiscs simulation results for Von Mises stress and temperature distribution of the paraffin PCM actuator for input voltage of 5 V. Designed phase shifter has a maximum insertion loss of 5 dB for a 360° of phase shift. (Figure 3)

© Prof. Nima Ghalichechian's Group

Related Papers

Polarization Reconfigurable Eccentric Annular Ring Slot Antenna Design

B. Ghassemiparvin and N. Ghalichechian, “Reconfigurable Millimeter-wave Antennas using Paraffin Phase Change Materials,” European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP), Davos, Switzerland, 10-15 Apr, 2016. DOI:https://doi.org/10.1109/EuCAP.2016.7481595 (Download PDF)

B. Ghassemiparvin and N. Ghalichechian, “Novel Paraffin-Based 100-GHz Variable Capacitors for Reconfigurable Antennas,' European Conference on Antennas and Propogation (EuCAP), Paris, France, 19-24 Mar, 2017.DOI:https://doi.org/10.23919/EuCAP.2017.7928379(Download PDF)

Polarization Reconfigurable U-slot Patch Antenna

B. Ghassemiparvin and N. Ghalichechian, 'W-Band True-Time Delay Phase Shifters Using Paraffin Microactuators,' European Conference on Antennas and Propogation (EuCAP), London, UK, 9-13 Apr, 2018.