volume | PIER Journals

Abstract

This paper presents a mechanically reconfigurable reflectarray with height adjustment for phase compensation. We designed, fabricated, and measured a prototype of 11×11 elements with microcontrollers to verify the feasibility of the proposed reflectarray. Simulated results show that the phase curve of the unit has good linearity and exhibit broadband characteristics. The maximum phase shift of the unit reaches about 200° at a center frequency of 16 GHz, which meets the requirement of a reflectarray with 1-bit phase quantization. Experimental results show that the gain of the proposed reflectarray is 17.7 dBi, with beam scanning range of ±50°. The proposed configurations can be used for a low-cost beam scanning antenna in wireless communication.

1. Berry, D., R. Malech, and W. Kennedy, "The reflectarray antenna," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 11, No. 6, 645-651, 1963.
doi:10.1109/TAP.1963.1138112 Google Scholar

2. Li, Y. and A. Abbosh, "Reconfigurable reflectarray antenna using single-layer radiator controlled by PIN diodes," IET Microw. Antennas Propag., Vol. 9, 664-671, 2015.
doi:10.1049/iet-map.2014.0227 Google Scholar

3. Han, J., L. Li, G. Liu, Z. Wu, and Y. Shi, "A wideband 1 bit 12×12 reconfigurable beam-scanning reflectarray: Design, fabrication, and measurement," IEEE Antennas Wirel. Propag. Lett., Vol. 18, No. 6, 1268-1272, 2019.
doi:10.1109/LAWP.2019.2914399 Google Scholar

4. Costanzo, S., F. Venneri, A. Raffo, G. Di Massa, and P. Corsonello, "Radial-shaped single varactor-tuned phasing line for active reflectarrays," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 64, No. 7, 3254-3259, 2016.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2016.2562673 Google Scholar

5. Pozar, D., S. Targonski, and H. Syrigos, "Design of millimeter wave microstrip reflectarrays," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 44, No. 2, 287-296, 1997.
doi:10.1109/8.560348 Google Scholar

6. Cui, T., M. Qi, X. Wan, J. Zhao, and Q. Cheng, "Coding metamaterials, digital metamaterials and programmable metamaterials," Light-Sci. Appl., Vol. 3, e218, 2014.
doi:10.1038/lsa.2014.99 Google Scholar

7. Xu, H., S. Xu, F. Yang, and M. Li, "Design and experiment of a dual-band 1 bit reconfigurable reflectarray antenna with independent large-angle beam scanning capability," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 19, No. 11, 1896-1900, 2020.
doi:10.1109/LAWP.2020.3011578 Google Scholar

8. Yang, X., S. Xu, F. Yang, M. Li, H. Fang, and L. Liu, "A mechanically reconfigurable reflectarray with slotted patches of tunable height," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 17, No. 4, 555-558, 2018.
doi:10.1109/LAWP.2018.2802701 Google Scholar

9. Yang, X., S. Xu, F. Yang, M. Li, and L. Liu, "A broadband high-efficiency reconfigurable reflectarray antenna using mechanically rotational elements," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 65, No. 8, 3959-3966, 2017.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2017.2708079 Google Scholar

10. Riel, M. and J. Laurin, "Design of an electronically beam scanning reflectarray using aperture-coupled elements," IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., Vol. 55, No. 5, 1260-1266, 2007.
doi:10.1109/TAP.2007.895586 Google Scholar

11. Costanzo, S., F. Venneri, A. Raffo, and G. Di Massa, "Dual-layer single-varactor driven reflectarray cell for broad-band beam-steering and frequency tunable applications," IEEE Access, Vol. 6, 71793-71800, 2018.
doi:10.1109/ACCESS.2018.2882093 Google Scholar

Dr. Weixiong Luo

Dr. Shixing Yu

Dr. Na Kou

Dr. Zhao Ding

Dr. Zhengping Zhang