A Wideband Low-Cost Reconfigurable Reflectarray Antenna With 1-Bit Resolution

A wideband 1 bit reflectarray antenna (RA) with two-dimensional (2-D) electronically beam-scanning capability is presented in this article. Based on the basic structure of the magnetoelectric (ME) dipole antenna, a novel reconfigurable RA (RRA) element is proposed for wideband operation by combining electric dipole resonance and magnetic dipole resonance. Each element is integrated with only one p-i-n diode to change the types of resonances, leading to a reconfigurable reflecting phase with a 1 bit resolution. As a demonstration, a wideband electronically RRA with 16 x 16 elements is developed, fabricated, and measured. In the proposed RRA, each element is connected with a separate bias line to independently control the working state and reflecting phase. Measured results show that the proposed RRA can achieve a 3 dB gain bandwidth of 38.4% with a peak aperture efficiency of 24% at 12 GHz. Besides, the proposed antenna can support the wide scanning angles ranging from -60 degrees to +60 degrees in the E-plane and 0 degrees to +60 degrees in the H-plane within the whole operating bandwidth. The proposed simple design could be a promising candidate for intelligent reflective surface (IRS) applications.

Automated summary

This article presents a wideband 1-bit reflectarray antenna with 2-D electronically beam-scanning capability. By using a novel reconfigurable element, the antenna achieves wideband operation and variable resonance types. Results show that the antenna performs well across the operating bandwidth and is a promising candidate for intelligent reflective surface applications.