An Active Metamaterial Antenna With MEMS-Modulated Scanning Radiation Beams

作者：Luo Yong^*; Kikuta Kazutaka; Han Zhengli; Takahashi Takuya; Hirose Akira; Toshiyoshi Hiroshi

来源：IEEE Electron Device Letters, 2016, 37(7): 920-923.

DOI：10.1109/LED.2016.2565559

• MEMS-modulated scanning beams
• tunable metamaterial antenna
• surface micromachining process
• RF-MEMS
• monolithic integration

In this letter, for the first time, we report a microelectromechanical system (MEMS)-modulated scanning beam metamaterial antenna based on surface micromachining process. The antenna is implemented by cascading periodical metamaterial modules with a unit length of less than lambda(g)/5 to make an electromagnetically homogeneous waveguide, of which the MEMS cantilevers are monolithically integrated in each unit as a radio frequency (RF) switch to modulate the phase constant beta, and thereby to realize the scanning beams in the fixed frequency around 8 GHz. Experiments that verified the MEMS-modulated scanning radiation beams are tuned from the backward (around -15 degrees) to the broadside (around 0 degrees) and to the forward (around +15 degrees) directions as the RF-MEMS switches are, respectively, actuated from the states of 0000-0000 (switches in all of the eight units are OFF) to 1010-1010 (switches in the unit of numbers 1, 3, 5, and 7 are ON) and to 1111-1111 (all switches are ON).

• 出版日期2016-7