By covering a metal ground plane with a periodic surface texture, we can alter its electromagnetic properties. The impedance of this metasurface can be modeled as a parallel resonant circuit, with sheet inductance L, and sheet capacitance C. The reflection phase varies with frequency from +/spl pi/ to -/spl pi/, and crosses through 0 at the LC resonance frequency, where the surface behaves as an artificial magnetic conductor. By incorporating varactor diodes into the texture, we have built a tunable impedance surface, in which an applied bias voltage controls the resonance frequency, and the reflection phase. We can program the surface to create a tunable phase gradient, which can electronically steer a reflected beam over +/- 40/spl deg/ in two dimensions, for both polarizations. We have also found that this type of resonant surface texture can provide greater bandwidth than conventional reflectarray structures. This new electronically steerable reflector offers a low-cost alternative to a conventional phased array.

Two-dimensional beam steering using an electrically tunable impedance surface

This paper provide a review of the active integrated antenna (AIA) technologies. After a brief introduction on the definition and some historical remarks, the paper concentrates on the research effort on the past decades or so. The AlAs are reviewed in its various functions. First, an oscillator-type AIA is presented, followed by very interesting aspects of coupled oscillator arrays for phase control. Use of an AIA concept for efficient RF front ends is described with examples on high-power amplifier AlAs. Next, a phase-conjugation-based retrodirective array is reviewed. Finally, AIA systems for receiving, transmitting, and duplexing are reviewed.

Active integrated antennas

The finite-difference-time-domain (FDTD) method is extended to include distributed electromagnetic systems with lumped elements (a hybrid system) and voltage and current sources. FDTD equations that include nonlinear elements like diodes and transistors are derived. Calculation of driving-point impedance is described. Comparison of FDTD calculated results with analytical results for several two-dimensional transmission-line configurations illustrates the accuracy of the method. FDTD results for a transistor model and a diode are compared with SPICE calculations. The extended FDTD method should prove useful in the design and analysis of complicated distributed systems with various active, passive, linear, and nonlinear lumped electrical components. >

Extending the two-dimensional FDTD method to hybrid electromagnetic systems with active and passive lumped elements

The basic theory of quasi-optical Gaussian beam propagation and beam transformation by simple optical elements is summarized, and coupling to and between Gaussian beams is briefly discussed Guidelines for Gaussian optics system design are reviewed, the most important being beam truncation and matching Passive components in the terahertz frequency range based on quasi-optical propagation, including polarization processors, filters, diplexers, and ferrite devices, are examined Some active quasi-optical devices, including multielement oscillators, frequency multipliers, and phase shifters, are described Some specific applications of quasi-optical systems are briefly described >

Quasi-optical techniques

A 50-MESFET grid amplifier is reported that has a gain of 11 dB at 3.3 GHz. The grid isolates the input from the output by using vertical polarization for the input beam and horizontal polarization for the transmitted output beam. The grid unit cell is a two-MESFET differential amplifier. A simple calibration procedure allows the gain to be calculated from a relative power measurement. This grid is a hybrid circuit, but the structure is suitable for fabrication as a monolithic wafer-scale integrated circuit, particularly at millimeter wavelengths. >

A grid amplifier

Monolithic diode grids have been fabricated on 2-cm square gallium-arsenide wafers with 1600 Schottky-barrier varactor diodes. Shorted diodes are detected with a liquid-crystal technique, and the bad diodes are removed with an ultrasonic probe. A small-aperture reflectometer that uses wavefront division interference was developed to measure the reflection coefficient of the grids. A Phase shift of 70 degrees with a 7-dB loss was obtained at 93 GHz when the bias on the diode grid was changed from -3 V to 1 V. A simple transmission-line grid model, together with the measured low-frequency parameters for the diodes, was shown to predict the measured performance over the entire capacitive bias range of the diodes, as well as over the complete reactive tuning range provided by a reflector behind the grid, and over a wide range of frequencies form 33 GHz to 141 GHz. This shows that the transmission-line model and the measured low-frequency diode parameters can be used to design an electronic beam-steering array and to predict its performance. An electronic beam-steering array made of a pair of grids using state-of-the-art diodes with 5- Omega series resistances would have a loss of 1.4 dB at 90 GHz. >

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Millimeter-wave diode-grid phase shifters

Monolithic diode grid were fabricated on 2-cm/sup 2/ gallium-arsenide wafers in a proof-of-principle test of a quasi-optical varactor millimeter-wave frequency multiplier array concept. An equivalent circuit model based on a transmission-line analysis of plane wave illumination was applied to predict the array performance. The doubler experiments were performed under far-field illumination conditions. A second-harmonic conversion efficiency of 9.5% and output powers of 0.5 W were achieved at 66 GHz when the diode grid was pumped with a pulsed source at 33 GHz. This grid had 760 Schottky-barrier varactor diodes. The average series resistance was 27 Omega , the minimum capacitance was 18 fF at a reverse breakdown voltage of -3 V. The measurements indicate that the diode grid is a feasible device for generating watt-level powers at millimeter frequencies and that substantial improvement is possible by improving the diode breakdown voltage. >

/pdf/millimeter-wave-diode-grid-frequency-doubler-2gou5rwxge.pdf

H.Z. Chen

Papers

Millimeter-wave diode-grid phase shifters

Millimeter-wave diode-grid frequency doubler