A Millimeter-Wave Wideband Dual-Polarized Antenna Array With 3-D-Printed Air-Filled Differential Feeding Cavities

A millimeter-wave high-gain dual-polarized antenna array with an enhanced bandwidth is presented. An innovative air-filled differential feeding cavity loaded with a short-ended cross-shaped waveguide is investigated to serve as the feed network and the mode splitter simultaneously of the 2 x 2 dual-polarized subarrays. Wideband characteristics and a compact planar size that are desirable for the wideband array design are achieved. Moreover, a wideband dual-polarized waveguidefed magnetoelectric (ME) dipole antenna with a lightweight self-support geometry and wideband H-plane parallel feed networks with modified dual-layered configurations are proposed, which are convenient to connect with the differential feeding cavity directly. With the use of a commercial metallic 3-D printing facility, the proposed radiating elements, feeding cavities, and feed networks can be combined successfully in a whole piece with a lightweight geometry. The printed 8 x 8 array prototype operating in the Ka-band confirms a wide bandwidth of about 30%, a gain of up to 28.5 dBi, and stable unidirectional radiation patterns for the two polarizations. Benefitted from the advantages of the promising wideband dual-polarized radiations and convenience of fabrication, the proposed antenna array would be attractive for millimeter-wave polarization diversity applications.

Automated summary

A millimeter-wave high-gain dual-polarized antenna array with an enhanced bandwidth is introduced in this paper. The innovative use of an air-filled differential feeding cavity loaded with a short-ended cross-shaped waveguide allows for a compact design and wideband characteristics. By utilizing a commercial metallic 3-D printing facility, the proposed radiating elements, feeding cavities, and feed networks can be combined into a lightweight structure. The prototype of the 8 x 8 array operating in the Ka-band demonstrates wide bandwidth, high gain, and stable radiation patterns for polarization diversity applications.